Strategies for Maintaining Crop Yield Among Low Commodity Prices
Dr. Connor Sible presented "Strategies for Crops Among Low Commodity Prices" at a recent field day, covering actionable steps you can take now and what to plan for next spring.
Research Update: Injury Potential to Very Early Planted Soybean from Various Soil-Residual Herbicides and Active Ingredients
Logan Miller, a Research Specialist at the University of Illinois, is collaborating with Dr. Aaron Hager on Illinois Soybean Association-funded research to evaluate the injury potential to early planted soybeans from various soil-residual herbicides. He provides an update on the study, detailing the 2024 planting dates, pre-emergence and post-emergence herbicide applications, along with photos to show the progress.
Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership Hosts 2024 Risk Management Conference
Registration is now open for the Illinois Sustainable Ag Partnership’s third biennial Risk Management Conference, a three-part webinar series tackling emerging and future threats to farm resiliency and how conservation practices can help mitigate those risks.
Well…How’d You Do?
As IL Soy Envoy Craig Grafton monitors the development of this year's crop and reflects on the recent planting season, he emphasizes the importance of evaluating successes and areas for improvement. In this blog post, he shares his approach to planting and assessing plots as the season unfolds.
Crop/Livestock Integration In Practice: Farms Share Their Experiences
During this field day in Iroquois County, the integration of crops and livestock will be showcased, highlighting the grazing of crop residues, cover crops, and annual forages. Host farmers will demonstrate how livestock integration operates on their farms and discuss its benefits for both soil health and the balance sheet.
Understanding the Crop Injury Risks of PRE Herbicides in Early-Planted Soybeans
As farmers continue to plant soybeans earlier, there are concerns about preemergence (PRE) herbicide injury to emerging seedlings. Supported by the Illinois Soybean Association, the University of Illinois Crop Sciences department is evaluating different PRE herbicides on early-planted soybeans to give farmers access to crop injury ratings for better weed management decisions.
Does Late Planting Mean Delayed Yields?
The 2024 planting season has been marked by significant variability, especially in planting dates. This raises the question: should soybean fields planted in mid-May be managed like those planted in April? According to IL Soy Envoy Drew Beckman, the answer is yes, and he provides reasoning in his latest blog.
Monitoring Root Development and Planning for Fungicide
Crop conditions across the state remain highly variable, and the IL Soy Envoys share their regional updates. This episode also covers wheat harvest, root establishment issues, slug damage, crops in the "ugly duckling" phase, herbicide misapplications, and notes for fungicide season.
“Way Too Early” Soybean Yield Predictions
In the latest podcast episode, the Soy Envoys share challenges posed by highly variable crop conditions, including yellowing in fields, persistent waterhemp problems, and root development issues. They also share their "way too early" soybean yield predictions and offer a detailed crop report from their region.

