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Virginia Cooperative Extension - Knowledge for the CommonWealth

Corn Hybrid Grain and Silage Results Now Available

Crop and Soil Environmental News, December 2004
Wade Thomason, Extension Grains Specialist

How do you select superior performing hybrids? Use results from the 2004 Virginia Corn Hybrid and Management Trials or the Virginia Corn Silage Testing Program 2004.

This year's results are available on-line at http://www.ext.vt.edu. In both html and pdf file formats.

To use the trial results, look at the overall relative yields and identify the site(s) which most represents your field and climate conditions, then:

  1. Use results from multiple sites and years. They are always more accurate than results from a single site.
  2. Review the least significant difference (L.S.D.) in the tables of results to determine which hybrids are truly different.
  3. Sort by the most important variable - typically yield.
  4. Sort by second most important variable. This could be maturity, lodging resistance, etc.
  5. Look for other variables which are different, such as grain moisture percentage, to assure genetic diversity.
  6. Look for other variables to further separate hybrids.

Carefully selecting a hybrid which will perform well under your conditions can contribute to improved yields next fall.

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