By Carrie Muehling

KANSAS CITY – More and more farmers are trying blended refuge products in their fields and that trend will likely continue during the 2013 growing season.

Mycogen Seeds has an expanded portfolio of products available for the coming, which includes Refuge Advance, powered by SmartStax.  In addition to above and below the ground insect protection, farmers can also now reduce the required refuge.

Agronomy Services Manager Keith Porter encourages growers to reflect back on 2012 at fertility practices, hybrid choices, and other factors within their control.  He said they should identify what worked and what didn’t and what improvements can be made.

“What’s the maturity range you want to find across your acres?  How do you want to balance that?  Are you using trait products?  Do you have the right stewardship or IRM plan in place with that?  Is it a hybrid product offering that needs to have early nitrogen plus late nitrogen?” asked Porter.

Porter said farmers saw value in SmartStax last year and will now have the option of Refuge Advance from Mycogen Seeds, which reduces the refuge down to five percent.

“That gives them the flexibility, the assurance of compliance with IRM and trait stewardship guidelines.  It allows them to plant those acres with a reduced refuge so they get more of that key traited product and the genetics they want,” said Porter.

Porter participated in Trade Talk at the National Association of Farm Broadcasting Convention in Kansas City in November.

Carrie Muehling can be reached at carrie@wjbc.com.