2017 Fall Farm Outlook

2017 Logan County Fall Farm Outlook Magazine LINCOLN DAILY NEWS Oct. 25, 2017 Page 11 to purchasing less herbicide. Unfortunately, saving on herbicide comes with an obvious consequence - more weeds growing in the fields. Adam Davis, an ecologist in the Department of Crop Sciences at the University of Illinois and USDAAgricultural Research Service, says that we need to be careful when dealing with weeds, otherwise we may hit a “tipping point.” “I believe if we fully lost chemical control of certain weeds, and if farmers continued with the corn-soybean rotation, they’d be forced to reduce their acreages as they spend more time and money managing weeds. And the cost of the end product, our food, would go up as well,” Davis says. Economically speaking, herbicide prices have actually decreased in recent years, according to information from the University of Illinois. “The assumption is that, in a rational market, people will use less of a dwindling resource because it gets more expensive or they notice a problem. It’s not happening for herbicides,” Davis says. Continued ►► Soybean fields sported a few more than the norm in waterhemp weeds, and despite a late start in many places due to an extended spring rain season and soggy soils, appear quite healthy. Photo By Jan Youngquist