RESULTS FROM A mid-February e-mail survey of no-tillers indicate there’s still a sizeable degree of uncertainty about the late-winter and early spring fertilizer situation. The results shown here are based on responses from 135 no-tillers with an average of 1,491 acres.

While no-tillers ARE today enjoying high commodity prices, I think it’s fair to assume that they won’t continue too far into the future.

Many produces have been adjusting their cropping practices to take advantage of record commodity prices.

The trend toward planting no-till corn earlier continues to grow. Increasing farm size and the need to cover a large number of acres within a shorter window of time make early corn planting necessary to avoid planting delays and potential late-season drought and pest problems toward the end of the growing season.

Main has been the only state in the U.S. that doesn’t permit the planting of Bt corn, but that might be about to change. The state’s Board of Pesticide Control licensed the genetically engineered corn this past summer and recently held a public hearing on proposed rules regulating its use in the state. Bt corn could be used for the first time in Maine as soon as 2008.