November 23, 2010

Contact: Bill Cox, Cornell University, 607-255-1758

Northern NY Corn Variety Trial Data May Help Farmers Up Yields, Lower Costs

Northern New York - Higher yield per acre equals cost savings for dairy farmers. Preliminary data from 2010 Northern NY corn variety trials funded by the Northern NY Agricultural Development Program is now online at www.nnyagdev.org to help regional farmers select the highest yield, highest quality corn hybrids for their farm business.

“Optimizing your corn planting to grow the maximum number of stalks and ears produces strong economic yield and attention to forage quality impacts the value of the crop as a feed for dairy cows,” says Cornell University Crop and Soil Sciences Professor Dr. Bill Cox, who conducted and analyzed the silage trial results in collaboration with E.V. Baker Professor of Agriculture Dr. Jerry Cherney.

Cox says the trials in Sackets Harbor at Robbins Farms and in Madrid at Greenwood Dairy were harvested on the same day with 39 varieties evaluated at each farm site. The varieties include some grown 85-90 days, some grown 91-95 days, and some grown 96-100 days.

According to the 2007 Census of Agriculture, corn is grown for harvesting as silage on 88,470 acres in Northern New York.
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