By DOUG SCHMITZ
Iowa Correspondent

WARREN, Ill. — Prairie Brand PB-2419RR2 yielded the highest bushels per acre in a Warren soybean seed test plot nearly three months ago.
The Prairie Brand product produced 91.2 bushels per acre worth an estimated $912 of gross income, with a moisture level of 11.7 percent.

Conducted by Farmer’s Independent Research of Seed Technologies (F.I.R.S.T.) at the Harbarch Partnership farm, the north-central Illinois test plot’s soil condition was Greenbush/Muscatine silt loam that was non-irrigated and moderately well-drained.

Jason Beyers, F.I.R.S.T. manager, said the plot was a “very nice, yielding location” in a field that had been in continuous corn for several years.
“All the beans were standing excellent for plant heights as tall as 48 inches,” he said. “This location received close to record amounts of rainfall for the growing season, but the soils were well-drained, which helped.”

The Jo Daviess County plot was rated moderately high P and moderately high K, with a 6.7 pH and a 4 percent OM. The 15-inch row-spaced test plot was planted at 170,000 seeds per acre on May 4, and harvested on Oct. 5 at 137,000 plants per acre.

In the same plot, the second highest-yielding variety was FS Seeds HS24R91, which produced 87 bushels per acre worth an estimated $870 of gross income, with a moisture level of 11.2 percent.

The third highest-yielding was Kruger K2-2301, which produced 86.5 bushels per acre, worth an estimated $865 of gross income, with a moisture level of 11.6 percent.

Out of the top 30 varieties, Prairie Brand also placed seventh, with PB-2558NRR, which produced 83.5 bushels per acre, worth an estimated $835 gross income, with a moisture level of 10.8 percent.

Prairie also placed 12th, with PB-2142R2, which produced 81.6 bushels worth an estimated $816 gross income, with a moisture level of 11 percent.
Prairie Brand also placed 15th with PB-2110R2, which produced 80.3 bushels per acre worth an estimated $803 of gross income, with a moisture level of 10.8 percent; and 17th with PB-2442R2, which produced 139.4 bushels worth an estimated $801 gross income, with a moisture level of 10.9 percent.

In addition, FS Seeds also placed ninth and 14th; and Kruger had the most products in the top 30, placing sixth, 10th, 11th, 16th, 20th and 27th.
The top 30 performers in these test plots are published in the chart on page 12.