Soybean Residue:

Background:

• Gooseneck customer called wondering what is causing every other row pattern in his lentils. It's the 2nd year  in a row that this has happened since purchasing a N560 drill from Gooseneck.
• Their guidance system is Amnistar and they try to shift their guidance lines over every year.
• Crop rotation: Lentil - Canola - Durum - Durum - Lentil
• Saw this in their canola last year as well, but seemed to come out of it.
• In 2022, their seeding date was on time, they used seed inoculant, seeding rate was ideal.
• They were shooting for a 1.5 - 1.75 inch seeding depth.

Fertilizer:

• Wheat - 130 lbs. Anhydrous @ 2.5 in. deep on 20-in. bands. 65lbs 11-52-0 with the seed.

Herbicide Rotation:

• 2020 Wheat Widematch
• 18-month crop rotation restriction to lentil.
• 2021  Wheat: OpenSky
• According to current label, 9-month crop rotation restriction to lentil in ND and needs 16 in. of rain.
• 2022 Lentil
• Fall 2021 - Valor
• Spring Pre - Sharpen & Roundup
• In Season - Section & Assure II
  

Solving the Case:

• The issue begins at seeding time in Wheat 2021
• Applies NH3 on 20 in. bands roughly 2.5 in. deep
• Applies OpenSky in-season during drought conditions
• Drought conditions all year
• NH3 acidifies the soil, OpenSky binds to low pH soils especially with less than 16 in. of rain
• Cropping restriction should now become 18 months technically...
• "OpenSky is degraded by microbial activity & breaks down more rapidly under favorable soil moisture & temperature conditions of drought or cold temperatures" -  according to label.
• Shifts guidance lines over to seed lentils in May 2022.
• Isn't using midrow banders, those are locked in the up position.
• Down pressure is real high, drill is tilting due to midrow banders being locked up which is the reason why they were seeing different seeding depths from one row to the other.
• 1.5 inches in good rows, 2-2.5 in bad rows
• if this was the only seeding depth/down pressure/drill issue, the crop would have grown out of it with moisture they had in 2022.
  

Theory - What was going on:

• Banding the NH3 on the "lower pH" soil, acidified the soil within that band. Limited moisture did not degrade OpenSky, which was bonded to the NH3 bands, with technically should have become an 18-month crop rotation restriction. The lentils that hit the NH3 band at 2.5 inches deep were stunted and showed herbicide injury all year long.
• Although, we can't "prove" this is exactly what happened because it takes a lot of variables to happen, the grower greatly appreciated our help and support in giving an answer that was logical and gave him a good feeling it wasn't an issue with the drill that he just purchased from Gooseneck Implement.