Corn is pollinating this week in parts of Illinois.

Corn photos from MI Corn College 2014.

© Aimee Cope

Pollination is starting to take place in late-April planted corn in parts of Illinois this week, reports Ken Ferrie, Farm Journal Field Agronomist. Unfortunately, there is a lot of unevenness in the crop, which makes addressing pests such as corn rootworm and Japanese beetle more difficult than usual.

“This is a good time, as we’re starting to push tassels out, to put your drones up and take pictures of your fields,” Ferrie says. “This will help your pest team know how to target specific areas in the field that are having trouble.”

Along with that, Ferrie says now is also a good time to look for corn that could be struggling with fallow syndrome.

“One sign is that corn turns purple due to a phosphate deficiency,” he says.

Tune into Ferrie’s recommendations on how to address fallow syndrome in corn and also how to keep it at bay on your prevent plant acres.

​