2023 Agtegra Agronomy Plot Results

2023 AGRONOMY PLOT RESULTS

Table of Contents Corn Trials..............................................................................................3-24 Omission & Addition..............................................................................................................................5-6 Nitrogen Stabilizers.............................................................................................................................. 7-8 Starters & Additives................................................................................................................................9-10 Residue Management.........................................................................................................................11-12 Nitrogen Fixing Bacteria....................................................................................................................13-14 Phosphate Availability.........................................................................................................................15-16 Seed Applied Additives......................................................................................................................17-18 V5 Foliar and Tassel Fungicides.......................................................................................................19-20 V5/VT Foliar Fungicide + Stress Reducers....................................................................................21-22 Rootworm Insecticides.......................................................................................................................23-24 Soybean Trials......................................................................................25-38 Omission & Addition..............................................................................................................................27-28 Seed Treatment......................................................................................................................................29-30 Seed Applied Additives.........................................................................................................................31-32 Starter Fertilizers & Additives................................................................................................................33-34 Foliar Fungicides & Foliar Feed........................................................................................................35-36 R2 Stress Reducing Spray Additives...........................................................................................37-38

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Good Agronomics Lead to Excellent Yields.

At Agtegra Cooperative, we strive to be a partner along with our farmers and be a leader in bringing new innovations to the farm. Each season, we are approached by many providers of ag inputs, bringing us a multitude of new options in crop protection, pest management, stress reduction and plant performance. The pace of these new options coming to the market is sometimes overwhelming and can make it difficult for farmers and even our own agronomy team to sort through various options.

In our Research and Technology Plots at our Bath, SD location, we try to do some of the foundational work for you! We demonstrate new products in a controlled, large strip-scale field environment. We strive to find new technologies that hold promise to improve crops, reduce plant stress, increase yield and crop quality and most importantly, improve top ROI for growers.

The following pages provide convenient access to results from our individual Research and Technology Plot studies. Please browse through and find the products that speak to your individual crops on your farm.

If you find a product that looks appealing and you wish to try that product on your farm, I encourage you to contact your local sales agronomist to get the product secured for your use as some new products that are early in development are launched in a limited supply. I also encourage you to do your own on-farm testing! At minimum, leave an untreated check strip, or leave a test strip with your current management program when comparing to a new product. This will allow you to see the real differences the new product provides to your farm…in your fields and field conditions!

If you are interested in gathering more detailed information on ROI with a new product by MZB® management zone, please again contact your local Agtegra Sales Agronomist or your Ag Technology Specialist and visit about setting up an on-farm trial through MZB Analytics. This detailed dataset will allow you to view how a new technology affects ROI by management zone in your own fields!

Brad Ruden Agronomy Tech Services Manager

All plots located in Aberdeen, SD at the Bath Research & Technology site. All corn and soybean plots were fertilized with 150 lbs/ac of 11-52-00 and 50 lbs/ac of 00-00-60. All corn plots were fertilized with RemaiN treated urea to a total available nitrogen load of 200 lbs/ac, except where noted.

2 All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

CORN TRIALS Omission & Addition...................................................5-6 Nitrogen Stabilizers................................................... 7-8 Starters & Additives...................................................9-10 Residue Management.............................................11-12 Nitrogen Fixing Bacteria........................................13-14 Phosphate Availability.............................................15-16 Seed Applied Additives.........................................17-18 V5 Foliar and Tassel Fungicides...........................19-20 V5/VT Foliar Fungicide + Stress Reducers........21-22 Rootworm Insecticides...........................................23-24

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Corn Growth Curve: Critical Phases for Yield Enhancement Inputs have a fit at different stages of the season. When we were able to get roots developed ahead of the heat of the season, we saw benefits. Yields in general at the Bath Research Plot were exceptional this year. Weather certainly had an impact on yields, but many of the practices laid out in the pages ahead impacted yield as well. Late season kernel fill was also key.

Phase I: Laying the Foundation • Uniform emergence • Early season vigor • Root development Phase II: Building the Factory • All leaves developed • Root system maximized • Number of rows at V5-V7 • Potential kernels per row at V10-V12 Phase III: Operating Efficiency • Maximum photosynthesis • Seed size and depth maximizing FLEX

CORN

• Managing stress

• Stalk strength

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Trial: Corn Omission & Addition

Agtegra Acre: A Systems Approach Corn production is a system of inter-related inputs. Maximum yield and ROI involves applying inputs in an intentional, complete production system. Year after year, maximum yield and gross return per acre have been obtained with a complete system approach in our corn production trials.

Our corn seed varieties have changed over the past 10 years and are much more responsive to tassel timing fungicide applications. The need for V5 applications has diminished in recent trials, but tassel timing fungicide is becoming more important. Increased plant health is allowing late season grain fill from hybrids with improved ability to flex kernel size. In high residue, corn on corn, high stress or highly managed fields, there is still a good fungicide opportunity at V5.

The plot results clearly show that in 2023, there was a significant need to establish corn plants EARLY in the season, and develop a robust root system prior to the high mid-summer heat. Key agronomic inputs in the trial were stabilized and highly available crop nutrients, the addition of biologicals to the production system, and timely fungicide applications. This included applying micronutrients along with both V5 and tassel timing fungicides. Removing any single input caused a reduction in gross and net return per acre.

Adding each single input to a basic production system raised yield, but often LESS than the removal of the component from full programs. This shows that there are significant INTERACTIONS among inputs and a SYSTEMS APPROACH will likely maximize yield.

MICROSUL 5

ARx MicroSul™ is a foliar blend formulated to promote plant growth and overall plant health with a comprehensive blend of nutrients including zinc, manganese, boron and sulfur.

Remove Technology

Deletion/Addition: Building the Agtegra Corn System Treatment #

TREATMENT

1

Premier Program

2

Nitrogen

3

Sync Rx

4 5 6

Add Technology

7

Biological V5 Fungicide/Micro Tassel Fungicide/Micro Standard Program

8

Nitrogen

9

Sync Rx

10

Biological

11 12

V5 Fungicide/Micro Tassel Fungicide/Micro

Nitrogen Agtegra RemaiN Untreated Urea Agtegra RemaiN Agtegra RemaiN Agtegra RemaiN Agtegra RemaiN Untreated Urea Agtegra RemaiN Untreated Urea Untreated Urea Untreated Urea Untreated Urea

Gross @ Gross $$ Gross $$ $4.50 vs Full vs Basic

Sync Biological V5 Fungicide/Micro Rx/Ascend^2 Sync Rx+ Foster Protegam YLD/MicroSul Ascend^2 Sync Rx+ Foster Protegam YLD/MicroSul Ascend^2

Tassel Fungicide/Micro

Yield

Delaro/N-Fuze

260.58 1172.61

0.00

133.29

Delaro/N-Fuze

251.76 1132.92

-39.69

93.60

Starter Only

Protegam YLD/MicroSul

Delaro/N-Fuze

250.09 1125.41

-47.20

86.09

No Foster Protegam YLD/MicroSul

Delaro/N-Fuze

243.52 1095.84

-76.77

56.52

Delaro/N-Fuze

242.41 1090.85

-81.76

51.53

243.29 1094.81

-77.8

55.49

230.96 1039.32 -133.29

0.00

238.42 1072.89

-99.72

33.57

241.10 1084.95

-87.66

45.63

246.72 1110.24

-62.37

70.92

247.06 1111.77

-60.84

72.45

246.26 1108.17

-64.44

68.85

Sync Rx+ Ascend^2 Sync Rx+ Ascend^2 Sync Rx+ Ascend^2

Foster

Foster

No V5 Treatment

Foster

Protegam YLD/MicroSul

Starter Only No Foster

No V5 Treatment

Starter Only No Foster

No V5 Treatment

Sync Rx+ Ascend^2

No Foster

No V5 Treatment

Starter Only

Foster

No V5 Treatment

Starter Only No Foster Protegam YLD/MicroSul Starter Only No Foster

No V5 Treatment

No Tassel Treatment No Tassel Treatment No Tassel Treatment No Tassel Treatment No Tassel Treatment No Tassel Treatment Delaro/N-Fuze

6 All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Corn Nitrogen Stabilizers

Protect Your Nitrogen Investment!

Plants can only use nitrogen in ammonium and nitrate forms. Because weather is unpredictable and soil types can vary within a small area, any field can be at risk of nitrogen loss through volatilization, leaching or denitrification. We trialed above/below ground nitrogen stabilizers and they again proved valuable.

RemaiN® treated urea vs untreated urea (applied pre) resulted in a 11.54 bushel gain. This is less than the 24.98 bushel gain we saw in 2022, but similar to the 13.58 bushel gain in 2021.

With corn at $4.50/bu, this equals $51.93/ac additional gross revenue, a very positive ROI! This is less than the $149.88/ac additional gross return in 2022, based then on $6/bu corn. The 5-year average yield gain to RemaiN treated urea is 17.79 bu/ac, or 80.06/ac, using the current corn price of $4.50/ bu!

Both products work well, but only if used at full rates!

Cutting the rate of RemaiN in half reduced yield by 5.63 bu/ac compared to the full rate. A cost savings of $6/acre for the low rate of stabilizer resulted in $25.34/ac in lost gross revenue, or $19.34/ ac loss in net revenue. Even with lower commodity prices in 2023, the cost of reducing N stabilizer rates is significant!

®

RemaiN is based on the proven technology of NBPT. What is different?

Formulation • RemaiN has an improved formulation, with an additional carrier that provides improved penetration Superior Handling • Better penetration means faster drying even in cold conditions, better flowability, and spreadability.

Great Storability • Formula is stable down to 0°F RemaiN use rates: • Urea 2 qts/ton • UAN 1 qt/ton

Remain + Urea 7

Remain + UAN solution

RemaiN Treated Urea Stalks

Classic N Deficient Leaves

Untreated Urea Stalks

N Deficient Symptoms Down Corn Rows

Corn Ear Development: • Full rate RemaiN treated urea (left) vs half rate RemaiN treated urea (center) vs. untreated urea (right). Nitrogen losses were severe in the plot area.

• Kernel rows around, ear fill to the tip, and especially ear girth (kernel depth) was significantly better in treated ears.

All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

8

Trial: Corn Starters & Starter Additives

Getting Corn off to a Solid Start!

Starter fertilizer alone provides a tremendous boost to corn development, helping establish sound, strong plants. A solid starter fertilizer program, with additives, improves stand and promotes rapid, even emergence, the early KEY to maximum yields.

ARx Sync™ is an organic acid additive that assists in nutrient availability, plant vigor and nutrient transport. We recommend ARx Sync on EVERY acre! The ROI for this product remains very solid.

Biological additives can increase general nutrient availability and uptake, especially focusing on phosphorus availability.

• Foster® (dry biological from Rosen’s) was a solid performer with ease of handling. This is our best recommendation.

• We also tested two liquid experimental biologicals and had good results. These products remain in development.

Plant growth regulators (PGR’s), such as Ascend2™, Cygin™ or Cygin™ Pro boost ROOT, SHOOT and LEAF growth. Tremendous improvement in plant vigor is seen. The PGR helps build up the entire plant, which showed a benefit and improved ROI! Treatment Results: • Biologicals: ARx Sync + Foster (dry biological from Rosen’s). This was an excellent program with solid ROI. • Biological + PGR: ARx Sync + Foster + Ascend2 or Cygin Pro were superior programs! Synergy between the components was consistent.

• Cygin and Cygin Pro: These are newer PGR products that contain a unique combination of three naturally derived plant growth regulators designed to increase plant performance: Homobrassinioilide, Auxin, and Gibberellin. Homobrassinioilide is a new generation of PGR.

SYNC ARx Sync is an organic-acid-based starter fertilizer additive that greatly enhances uptake of starter fertilizer nutrients and boosts plant growth and development. The highly refined nature of the product assures ease of blending in nearly all liquid fertilizers and combines high biological activity and low use rates.

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10 All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Residue Management

Nutritional Benefits in Residue Management Biologicals Corn residue is increasingly persistent due to improved stalk health. A residue management biological product can have a place in corn on corn systems where nutrient tie-up is a factor or to boost available potassium in soybean fields. Soil samples taken from this plot confirm that significant nutrition can be released from residue when broken down.

Soil samples were taken at the end of August, revealing that the soybeans didn’t leave much nitrogen in the soil for next year’s crop. The phosphorus levels went up 12 ppm and potassium up 95 ppm, which is a critical nutrient for a soybean crop at the end of the growing season.

These residue management products had positive yield results after being applied in the Spring in our plots. In addition to higher yields, these products also have good handling characteristics, including low use rates and cost points, no bad odor, and good flowability and mixing.

No residue management biological

Excavator® with water only

Excavator® with water and UAN

Residue management products are compatible with herbicide residuals and can be sprayed with pre’s.

WATCH THE VIDEO >> 11

to see the residue breakdown results from our plot trial this past season! www.youtube.com/@agtegracooperative

Corn residue management effects on soil sample results: UNTREATED Nutrient

TREATED

Measurement

Nutrient

Measurement

Phosphorus

11 ppm

+ 12

Phosphorus

22 ppm

Potassium

17 ppm

+ 95

Potassium

40 ppm

Zinc

1.5 ppm

+ 1.36

Zinc

2.86 ppm

Organic Matter

3.9%

+ .3%

Organic Matter

4.2%

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Variety: NK14- C7XF planted at 140,000 seeds/acre.

All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Corn Nitrogen Fixing Bacteria (Biologicals)

Inconclusive Plot Results Agtegra continues to test and research various biologicals to stay on top of technology in the market, but haven’t seen consistent enough results to make a broad recommendation for this segment of the market.

• Over three years of research, we have found inconsistent performance of the nitrogen fixing products in this category.

• The concept of biological nitrogen fixation is solid, but proper management of this category of biologicals is yet to be determined.

We have three rules of thumb to follow when managing corn with nitrogen fixing bacteria: 1. DO NOT look at these products as a replacement for any amount of nitrogen. Plot data clearly shows that the maximum ROI is achieved by using these products as a supplement to a full nitrogen pro-gram.

2. Strictly follow the handling guidelines on the labels. These are generally very delicate bacteria, and they DO NOT survive well in starter fertilizers. The two most common products, Envita® and ProveN® 40, are quite unstable. The longevity of these products once mixed in starter is as short as a few hours.

3. The consistent performance of these products is less than we desire. Improvement may be coming but is not there yet. There are too many inconsistencies for us to be comfortable with a broad recommendation.

Previous plot research at the Bath location showed that maximum ROI with these products is obtained when the nitrogen fixation is viewed as a supplement to a full nitrogen fertilizer program, rather than as a replacement for any nitrogen fertilizer.

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14 All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Corn Phosphate Availability

Phosphate Tie-Up = Lost (or Delayed) Value to Applied Fertilizer Phosphate tie-up can reduce the effective nutrient availability of phosphate fertilizers by up to 70%!

Adding 30 lbs/ac of phosphate to compensate for tie-up does provide a yield gain, but is not a recommended management practice. Instead, treating phosphate either in the Fall or Spring with a product like P Max® Ultra, Levesol® DFC or Trivar® protects against phosphate tie-up.

• P Max Ultra treated MAP versus untreated MAP (applied to surface as a pre) resulted in a 9.83/ac bushel gain. With corn at $4.50/bu value this equals $44.24/ac additional gross revenue. Levesol DFC treated MAP versus untreated MAP resulted in a 10.39 bu gain, or $46.76/ac gross return.

Impregnating fertilizer with P-Max Ultra EZ FLO will ensure your phosphate fertilizer is protected.

Take care of phosphate deficiencies and replace phosphate removed by this year’s crop.

Benefits: • Promotes early season root growth, vigor and better overall plant structure • More phosphate available leads to higher yield potential • Increase your fertilizer efficiency and ROI Features: • Protecting polymer that helps keep phosphate more readily available • Specifically designed for dry fertilizer impregnation • Regardless of the amount of phosphate fertilizer applied, P Max increases the plants ability to turn applied phosphates into more bushels at harvest 15

Use rate: 3 qt/ton

16 All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Corn Seed Applied Additives

Using Talc & Graphite as a Carrier for Nutrients Basic talc and graphite products are cheap, but provide no nutrition. The value of using seed applied talc and graphite replacements was extremely solid in our plots! Providing nutrition and bio enhancement products to every seed, in addition to providing the needed seed lubrication for proper planting, is extremely efficient. Seedling vigor had a huge role in 2023, getting roots established early.

Stride Bio™ provides enhanced nutrition, good seed fluency, and most importantly, stress reduction through the patented Yield Burst™ technology from Rosen’s.

Stride Bio had a 11.59 bushel gain versus talc + graphite alone. With corn at $4.50/bu value this equates to $52.16/ac additional gross return. The added value of Stride Bio versus talc + graphite or even a basic nutrition-only talc/graphite product is solid, even in a high yielding environment.

All tested products fully meet planter specifications.

Stride Bio is 80/20 talc graphite. It contains Calcium, Magnesium, Sulfur, Iron, Manganese, and Zinc.

It also contains stress reducers to up-regulate genes for seedling vigor and early growth.

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18 All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Corn V5 Foliar & Tassel Stress Reducing Spray Additives

Additional Focused Stress Reduction in Corn It is no secret that 2023 was an extremely hot and dry growing season. The Bath location did receive some timely rains, and these rains did help improve yield greatly. However, the area still experienced significant periods of very hot weather.

Fungicides can provide two distinct actions when applied to the plant.

• The first action is disease control. Whether looking at stalk rot control with a fungicide at V5 timing or gray leaf spot, northern corn leaf blight, rust or the future possibility of tar spot control at tasseling, disease control will be solid with top-tier fungicides.

• The second action of fungicides, especially top-tier products like Delaro® 325 SC or TrivaPro® is stress reduction. These fungicides help the plant reduce water loss, maintain lower canopy temperatures, and maintain positive photosynthesis during periods of high heat.

Historical data has shown the response to V5 fungicides has been trending downward in the past several seasons at Bath, whereas the response to tassel fungicides has been increasing. The ability of modern corn varieties to “flex” and fill the ear late in the season has allowed a late season plant health response to grow.

• V5 Fungicides: This year, the V5 crop stage appeared very responsive to a micronutrient + fungicide application. I suspect a fortunate timing application, as the application was made shortly before an extreme heat event. This allowed the fungicide to reduce plant stress significantly and maximize rows on the ears.

• Tassel Fungicides: Untreated corn leaves roll during the heat of the day, causing an open canopy that lets in more sunlight, resulting in higher temperatures and stressed plants. By adding a fungicide like Delaro 325 SC, corn leaves stay open longer, providing shade and keeping temperatures cooler and ultimately reducing plant stress.

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2023 Corn Tassel Timing Delaro + ARx N-fuZe: Leaf Rolling An untreated strip and a Delaro 325 SC and ARx N-fuZe™ treated strip was sprayed on July 19, 2023 at the Bath plot. Photos were taken July 26, 2023 at 11:38 AM when the air temperature was 99F and at 3:30 PM when the air temperature was 106F. The Delaro 325 SC + ARx N-fuZe treatment kept the leaves from rolling up, which allowed sunlight absorption for continued growth. Temperature at ear height was also 2.6F cooler in the treated area.

3:30 PM

11:38 AM

Untreated: • Rolling leaves • Factory Closed

Treated: • Flat leaves • Factory Open

Untreated: • Rolling leaves • Open canopy • Higher temp

Treated: • Flat leaves • Closed canopy • Lower temp 20

Variety: DKC 45-74 planted at 34,000 seeds/acre All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Corn V5 &VT Foliar Fungicide + Stress Reducers

Additional Focused Stress Reduction in Corn The hot, dry weather experienced during June 2023 followed by another very hot spell at the end of July placed the corn crop under a significant amount of plant stress at some key developmental stages of growth. Fungicides are a key component of reducing plant stress, but there is a newer set of focused products on the market that are dedicated directly to reducing plant stress and improving plant metabolism. We tested several products, along with a fungicide, at the V5 and VT growth stages.

PGR (Plant Growth Regulator) products have been used to overcome stress in crop production for many years.

• Adding a PGR, like Ascend2™ or Cygin™ Pro to a fungicide improved plant growth and resulted in higher corn yields when applied at either the V5 or the VT stages of crop growth.

Dedicated Stress Reduction Products: Several dedicated stress reduction products were tested. These products are generally naturally derived extracts and/or amino acid containing products.

• The products ReLeaf™ OS, Voyagro®, YieldOn®, Optum, Crop+™, and B Sure® were applied in the plot. All provided a boost in growth and yield when applied at the respective application timings.

Improved plant growth during high stress was noted.

• There also appears to be an additive effect of applying a boron-containing micronutrient such as Moxon™ B at tassel timing in corn. Boron can be a key in pollination and pollen tube health and growth. It appears there is a positive effect of boron, especially with high heat. Agtegra also has a product called ARx N-fuZe™ that contains foliar boron along with slow release nitrogen and potassium. This product has proven itself as an excellent foliar product for corn foliar applications.

Overall Best Recommendations: • At VT stage, there appears a potential for significant stress reduction • Fungicides and micronutrients are key strategies at VT • The stress reduction products can be very effective, in a additive manner • ReLeaf OS appears to have value, in both corn and soybeans.

• There is a very strong response to micronutrient applications, especially those containing significant boron (a key to pollination efficiency)

N-fuZe

21

ARx N-fuZe is formulated with both urea and urea-triazone (slow release) forms of nitrogen. These slow release fertilizers aid crop safety, help nutrient efficiency, promote low volatility, and improve handling properties. This micronutrient package is formulated with zinc, copper, manganese and boron.

22

Variety: DKC 45-74 planted at 34,000 seeds/acre All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Corn Rootworm Insecticides

Rootworms: A Re-Emerging Pest in the Northern Plains Corn rootworm pressure is nothing new to corn production in the United States. However, in recent years, there has been a significant upswing in rootworm pressure in the Northern Plains region of South and even North Dakota. The prevalence of excellent-yielding, cost-effective Double Pro® corn hybrids has provided broad acreages that are potentially susceptible to corn rootworm. SmartStax® and the new SmartStax Pro hybrids will provide good to excellent control of this pest, but even these hybrids may experience feeding pressure.

The Bath Research and Technology plots have experienced an extreme infestation of Northern Corn Rootworm Beetles (green) in recent years, peaking in 2022. In 2023, we also experienced heavy rootworm beetle flights, but the focus was more toward Western (striped) rootworm beetles. We suspect that 2024 may be a very heavy pressure year. The purpose of the test was to investigate the performance of in-furrow rootworm insecticides under susceptible corn hybrid on a field with EXTREME rootworm pressure.

• The Bath Plot was planted as corn on corn on corn with susceptible hybrids three years running.

• Extreme feeding pressure was present in the field, causing extremely low yields. Roots were essentially trimmed off in the untreated plot, leaving less than ¾” roots.

• Even a SmartStax hybrid in the field was fed upon, reducing potential yield. However, the effect of the trait was clear, with significantly improved yields versus a comparable Double Pro. • Bifenthrin-containing insecticides Capture® LFR, Bifender® FC, Batallion™ LFC and Tundra® LFC all performed well, and essentially equally. Tepera® Plus, with bifenthrin plus a fungicide, added to performance.

• Nurizma® is a new insecticide that performed extremely well. This product holds promise.

• It is possible that even SmartStax hybrids will perform best with an added in-furrow insecticide, if feeding pressure is extreme.

• Future testing will include SmartStax and SmartStax Pro hybrids.

23

2022 corn in-furrow insecticides comparison. DKC47-48RIB planted at 34,000 seeds/ac.

DOUBLE PRO

V.

SMARTSTAX

DOUBLE PRO + CAPTURE LFR V. DOUBLE PRO + BATALLION LFC

24 Variety: DKC 45-74 planted at 34,000 seeds/ac.

All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

SOYBEAN TRIALS Omission & Addition.....................................................................27-28 Seed Treatment..............................................................................29-30 Seed Applied Additives................................................................31-32 Starter Fertilizers & Additives.......................................................33-34 Foliar Fungicides & Foliar Feed..................................................35-36 R2 Stress Reducing Spray Additives..........................................37-38

Soybean Growth: Critical Timings for Yield Enhancement Phase I: Laying the Foundation • Uniform emergence • Early season vigor • Root development • Nitrogen fixation begins at V3 Phase II: Building the Factory • New trifoliate every 3 - 5 days • Potential nodes (main stem) at V2 • Lateral buds at V3 • Maximum flowers at V4-V5 • Number of pods at R1 - R3 Phase III: Operating Efficiency • Managing stress • Maximizing photosynthesis • Maximum seeds in pods at R3-R4 • Seed size and pod fill at R5 - R6 • Plant health, stalk strength and even dry down SOYBEAN

SEED

VE

VC

V1

V2

V3

R1

R2

R3

R4

R5

R8

Trial: Soybean Omission & Addition

Agtegra Acre: A Systems Approach Just like in corn, soybean production is a system of inter-related inputs. Maximum yield and ROI involves applying inputs in an intentional, complete production system. Year after year, maximum yield and gross return per acre have been obtained with a complete system approach in our soybean production trials.

Stabilized and available crop nutrients, biologicals, biostimulants and fungicides, seed applied PGR, seed treatment and fungicide + micronutrients are all key elements to the recommended Agtegra soybean system.

Maximum yield and gross return per acre were obtained with a complete system approach to soybean production. Removing any single input caused a significant reduction in gross return per acre. The largest loss was removing the Delaro® 325 SC + ARx N-fuZe™ program at R3. Adding each single input to a basic production system raised yield, but much less than the removal of the component from full programs. The largest single addition was to the seed applied PGR and seed fluency agent.

What factors worked together for high yields in 2023?

Maximum soybean production in 2023 required rapid, early development of vigorous soybean plants with deep roots. If the plants could develop a robust root system, the crop has the ability to survive the high heat. The second key to maximum yields came at flowering, where reduction of plant stress added to yield. This is the focus of the Agtegra Acre approach for soybeans.

Phase 1 Establishment: Laying the Foundation • Seed Treatment: maximum stand counts, uniform germination and emergence only happen with a full F& I seed treatment, like CruiserMaxx® APX. • Fertility Levels: high quality liquid starter and additives like ARx Sync™, which helps keep nutrients available to young plants, was key to early rapid plant growth. Additional research showed that liquid fertilizer rates up to 5 GPA can be safely applied to soybeans in furrow.

• Boosting the plant: Adding a PGR and a seed-applied fluency agent plus micronutrient to the seed boost early plant vigor resulting in rapid, deep root development. This aided in surviving the summer heat.

Plant Development: Keeping the Plant “Factory” Productive

27

• Plant Vigor, Stress and Disease protection: An application of Delaro 325 SC fungicide plus ARx N-fuZe at the R2- R3 growth stage in soybeans reduced plant stress, allowing better pod set.

Foliar nitrogen with ARx N-fuZe aided in developing larger seeds, improving test weight and yield. A low level of white 4 bean pods only happen with excellent plant health at R3! mold did develop in the untreated areas of the plot. Delaro 325 SC is effective at controlling lower levels of this disease.

Deletion/Addition: Building the Agtegra Soybean System

28 All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Soybean Seed Treatment

Emergence and Vigor Matters!

Soybean seed treatment with a full fungicide + insecticide treatment has remained a hallmark of high productivity soybeans.

• Differences in yield between treatments were highly significant.

• The value and ROI of a full F & I treatment was clear, and the value of a seed treatment remained solid this year, even with drought conditions.

• ROI was ABOVE $40 per acre, as it has been, on average, for 12 years!

• CruiserMaxx® APX is our primary offer for 2024, and consistently remains at the top of the plot data.

• If Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS) or other additional diseases are present, visit with your agronomist about adding Saltro® to CruiserMaxx® Vibrance® for those troubled fields. There is a significant investment in this top-end treatment, but results look stunning and easily overcome the added seed treatment cost!

2023 Trial Take-Aways: • Inoculant remains a SOLID VALUE! • Preside Ultra® will be our best offering again in 2024 • Preside® Melee™ is a solid single component product.

• Melee does not contain Take Off ST® component • Lalfix® ProYield continues to perform very close to Preside

Above photo: Untreated (left) vs. CruiserMaxx APX (right). Plants taken from two foot plant row.

29

30 All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Soybean Seed Applied Additives

Adding Value - Talc & Graphite with Micronutrients and Crop Boosters The value of seed applied talc and graphite replacements was as high on soybeans as corn!

Providing nutrition and bio-enhancement products to every seed, in addition to providing the needed seed lubrication for proper planting, is extremely efficient. One product can serve both corn and soybean needs.

Seedling vigor was just as important in soybeans as in corn in 2023. Getting roots deep into the soil early and ahead of the heat was key to improved yields.

Stride Bio™ provides enhanced nutrition, good seed fluency, and most importantly, stress reduction through the patented Yield Burst™ technology from Rosen’s®.

Stride Bio had a 4.96 bushel gain versus talc + graphite alone. With soybean pricing at $12/bu, this provides $59.56/ac additional gross return.

Untreated (left), Rocket Seeds® PMZ Dry (middle), Stride Bio (right)

31

Stride Bio is 80/20 talc graphite.

It contains Calcium, Magnesium, Sulfur, Iron, Manganese, and Zinc. It also contains stress reducers to up-regulate genes for seedling vigor and early growth.

Gross return of $59.56/ac versus talc and graphite alone (based on $12 soybean price).

32 All registered trademarks property of their respective owners.

Trial: Soybean Starter Fertilizers & Additives

The Path to Maximum Soybean Yield Starts Early!

Starter fertilizer in soybeans is a lesser-known key to getting an early significant boost to soybean development, helping establish sound, strong plants.

As with corn, a solid starter fertilizer program with additives improves stand and promotes rapid, even emergence, the early KEY to maximum yields. Large, deep taproots also help with drought tolerance.

• ARx Sync™ is an organic acid additive that assists in nutrient availability, plant vigor and nutrient transport. We recommend ARx Sync on EVERY acre! The ROI for this product remains as solid for soybean as it is for corn.

• Plant Growth Regulators (PGR), such as Ascend2™, Cygin™ or Cygin™ Pro boost root, shoot and leaf growth. Soybeans are tremendously responsive to PGRs, and significant improvement in plant vigor is seen. The PGR helps build up the entire plant, which showed a benefit and improved ROI! • Biological Additives can increase general nutrient availability and uptake, especially focusing on phosphorus availability.

• Foster® was a solid performer with ease of handling. This product is also sold in the corn market and is a good recommendation.

• We also tested two liquid experimental biologicals and had very good results. These products remain in development.

Treatment Results: • ARx Sync + Ascend2 or Cygin Pro were superior programs! Consistent synergy!

• Biologicals have a solid place in our arsenal and are worth field-scale testing to prove efficacy in soybeans.

Cygin and Cygin Pro are newer PGR products that contain a unique combination of three naturally derived plant growth regulators designed to increase plant performance: homobrassinioilide, auxin, and gibberellin. Homobrassinolide is a new generation of PGR.

Abundance Concentrate Cygin Pro Cygin Ascend2 Foster Starter + ARx Sync Starter Alone Untreated

The photo is looking down the rows with the Cygin Pro treatment.

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Trial: Soybean Foliar Fungicides & Foliar Feed

Keeping Soybeans Healthy - All Season!

Soybeans responded well to foliar feeding at the R2- R3 growth stage. Timely rains in August helped with pod set, but earlier drought left the soybeans with good top growth, but not deep root systems.

These shallow root systems caused the plants to be nutrient deprived later in the season when the pods were demanding a high load of nutrients. Reducing plant stress and fighting off diseases during pod fill resulted in foliar fungicides paying dividends.

Foliar Nutrition: Agtegra offers several proprietary foliar feeding products that fit the soybean market well.

• ARx NutraSul DT® is a customized blend of micronutrients specifically designed for and registered for use along with dicamba application to dicamba-tolerant soybeans. This product looks great as a general crop nutrient additive with soybean spray programs throughout the year.

• ARx MicroSul™ is a custom blend manufactured by Prescription Agronomics® in Ipswich. The blend contains Zinc, Manganese and Boron as well as 4.2% foliar Sulfur, a key nutrient for soybeans in setting pods and building protein.

• ARx N-fuZe™ is formulated with both urea and urea-triazone (slow release) forms of nitrogen, which promote growth and are crop-safe any time of the year. To amplify ARx N-fuZe, zinc, copper, manganese, and boron are also added.

Fungicides 2023 • Soybeans responded to a foliar fungicide when applied at the R2-R3 growth stage. Top-tier combination fungicides such as Delaro® 325 SC or TrivaPro® looked very good in the plots. The combinations provided good stress relief, which maintained pod set and improved yield.

• Surprisingly, we did experience a low level of white mold appearing in the plots in 2023. As a result, white-mold specific treatments such as Endura®, applied once or two times in the plot showed a significant yield response.

• Yield responses to fungicides were similar in 2023 to 2022 results. Positive ROI can be calculated each year.

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Variety: NK S14-U9X planted at 140,000 seeds/acre.

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Trial: Soybean R2 Stress Reducing Spray Additives

Focused Stress Reduction Additives with Fungicides As with corn, the hot, dry weather experienced during June 2023 followed at the end of July with another stint placed the soybean crop under a significant amount of plant stress during the critical pod fill stage. Fungicides are a key component of reducing plant stress, but newer products on the market that are dedicated to reducing plant stress may provide some benefits. We tested several products, including Delaro® 325 SC fungicide and ARx N-fuZe™ foliar fertilizer on R2- R3 soybeans.

PGR (Plant Growth Regulator) products have been used to overcome stress in crop production for many years.

• Adding a PGR, like Ascend2™ or Cygin™ Pro to a fungicide only marginally improved plant yield.

Plant growth in soybeans was quite good at the Bath plot despite the drought conditions, and the PGR seemed to have only minimal positive effects.

Dedicated Stress Reduction Products: Several dedicated stress reduction products were tested. These products are generally naturally derived extracts and/or amino acid containing products.

• The products ReLeaf™ OS, YieldOn®, and Optum provided a significant boost in growth and yield when applied with Delaro 325 SC and ARx N-fuZe. Improved plant growth during high stress was noted.

• Additional years of testing are needed, but there appears to be a positive effect of these dedicated products, and they are worth investigating and testing on a larger field scale.

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