January 2001 Soy News

Soybeans Today January 2001

SRVP looks at conventional versus Roundup Ready

by Rich Maples

Derek Boling wasn't sure Roundup Ready varieties belonged on his farm. He liked the convenience and flexibility of using Roundup for weed control, but he was concerned about yields.

Boling says, "I wasn't willing to give up 3-5 bushels or more in yield, and I believed I had a good system in place using conventional varieties. But I'm always open-minded enough to try new things."

The Paragould farmer decided to find out if Roundup Ready varieties could compete with his conventional varieties. In 1998, he enrolled a 40-acre field in the University of Arkansas' Soybean Research Verification Program, which is funded by the Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board.

Boling picked a tough year for the SRVP team. Mark Brawner, Greene County agent for the U of A Cooperative Extension Service, says the crop got off to a good start but went downhill when almost 30 inches of rain fell in late July and early August.

Brawner says, "A lot of flat-planted fields around our SRVP field were just disked up, but our field was up on beds."

On the conventional side of the SRVP field, Asgrow 5959 beans averaged 29 bushels an acre. The Roundup Ready variety, NK 559-V6, averaged 33 bushels an acre.

The county agent says, "1999 was a drought year, but that's what this field needs. It's a clay-loam type soil, a little heavier on one end than the other. The field does better when it's watered through irrigation instead of rainfall."

The field was furrow irrigated down every other middle using the U of A's irrigation scheduling computer program. The scheduling program was developed with funding from the Soybean Promotion Board.

"1999 was so dry that we had to irrigate the field to plant," says Boling. "We had to flush the beds."

The Asgrow 5959 soybeans averaged 55 bushels per acre, four bushels higher than the Roundup Ready NK 559-V6 beans. Overall, the field averaged 52 bushels per acre.

"I didn't give them an easy field, either," says Boling. "It's a very tough piece of dirt. It was leveled five years ago, and it was tough before it was cut. One part of the field is just a blue gummy mess."

The farmer says he appreciates the flexibility that Roundup gives. "The Roundup Ready beans are more forgiving. With conventional chemicals, timing is everything. With Roundup you have a wider window. With farms getting larger, that's real important."

Richard Klerk, U of A soybean agronomist and SRVP coordinator, notes that Boling has a red rice problem. "Roundup Ready appears to be one of the better management practices for red rice control."

Klerk says he hasn't seen much difference in yields and red rice control between the Roundup Ready and conventional systems in his SRVP fields. The difference is in convenience and cost.

Brawner says, "We have about $10 to $14 more an acre on the Roundup Ready side due to the technology fee. The weed control has been fairly similar.

The red rice was blanked on the Roundup Ready side, and the red rice was blanked on the conventional side where Select was used."

After three years in the Soybean Research Verification Program, Boling says, "Right now, I'm leaning toward conventional beans. I can see the advantage of Roundup if you have a problem like pigweed, but this field doesn't have it. And Roundup gives you a wider window to get things done.

"But I believe I can control my costs as well with conventional varieties and not give up yields."

Soybeans Today January 2001
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For additional information about any board-related activity contact:

Arkansas Soybean Promotion Board
ATTN: Brandy Carroll
P.O. Box 31
Little Rock, AR 72203-0031
Phone: 501-228-1268

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