Soil temperatures at the Southern Research and Outreach Center at Waseca this morning are around 40 degrees. Talking with agronomists in our area soil conditions for planting corn are very mellow, almost ideal for planting corn. We have also passed the date for crop insurance to have replant coverage as that was April 11, 2021. So, is it still too cold to plant corn. Do you need to be concerned about cold shocking the seed?

When the corn seed is in the ground it will absorb water to begin germination. If the water is really cold it can damage the seed membranes and the seed will die. This can occur in the first 24 to 48 hours. However, Jay Zielske agronomist with Pioneer said it is much easier to diagnose cold shocking or cold chilling the seed after it happens than predicting when it will occur.

Jay added there have been times when he was certain he would see cold chilling damage and the field turned out just fine. Then there have been times when he did not anticipate cold chilling damage and saw it. Click on the link and listen to Jay discuss cold chilling and some recommendations for farmers that feel they need to plant corn!

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