Soybean Field Trial Results – Bayard, Iowa
Name: James Tuel Farms
Location: Bayard, Iowa
Farm Details: We currently focus on field corn and soybean production, and cattle farming. Year after year, we lose considerable amounts of corn and soybeans due to deer damage. We have used temporary 3D double-row fencing for the past 12 years but there have been electrical issues, and the upkeep is worse than maintaining cattle. For 2022 we decided not to utilize the 3D fencing and try Plantskydd for controlling deer damage on some of our soybean crops.
Product Application: Our field trial consisted of 91 acres of soybean. We had a ‘check strip’ (control) area on the 91-acre field, which was 0.2 acres and was located in an area of heavy deer traffic, bordered by dense woods on one side. This area did not have any Plantskydd applied to it throughout the field trial. We also had a High Deer Pressure area on the field, which was 1.3 acres and was bordered on two sides by dense woods. We sprayed three separate applications of Plantskydd on June 3, 2022, July 11, 2022, and August 10, 2022. We used a ratio of 1 lb Plantskydd powder/10 gallons of water and applied at a rate of 20-25 gallons/acre for all 3 applications. The first application of Plantskydd occurred at the VC-V1 stage. Using a 120 ft boom width sprayer, we applied the Plantskydd to all but the ‘check strip’ area on the 91-acre field. The second application was approximately five weeks later and was only applied to the border of the entire field, minus the ‘check strip’ area. The third application was approximately four weeks after the second application, via border application on the entire field, minus the ‘check strip’ area.
Product Application Images:
Field Images:
Check strip area (0.2 acres, no application of Plantskydd)
High deer pressure treated area (1.3 acres, Treated with Plantskydd)
Soybean Harvest Information
Check strip area average yield: 34.85 bushels/acre
High deer pressure treated area average yield: 54.37 bushels/acre
Total soybean average yield: 76.23 bushels/acre
Results: The average yield on the 0.2 acres ‘check strip’ area (no Plantskydd applied) was 34.85 bushels/acre and the average yield on the 1.3 acres high deer pressure area was 54.37 bushels/acre. The average total yield of soybean on the 91 acre field was 76.23 bushels/acre. Overall, we found Plantskydd to be slightly less effective than our previous 3D electric fencing that we have used for the last 12 years. I would estimate 20% less effective. We believe we could have higher yields if we mix 1 lb Plantskydd / 10 gallons water, and apply at a 10 gallon/acre rate, instead of the 20-25 gallon/acre rate we used. We were advised we can also mix 1.5 to 2 lb Plantskydd / 20 gallons water if applying at a 20-25 gallon/acre rate. Also, it is recommended to apply Plantskydd every 10 to 14 days due to the plant outgrowing the product. Since we applied our second and third applications approximately 4 and 5 weeks after the previous application, we are looking into applying Plantskydd every 14 days and possibly doing a fourth application, if needed.
