The worksheet is designed to allow producers to make crop decisions a few weeks before planting. Producers estimate the year's yields by measuring preseason and projecting growing-season moisture levels. Under this scenario, Helmers said, pre-season tilling and herbicide application decisions to match the crop being planted would be made in the spring instead of fall. In developing the worksheet, researchers studied 11 years of data from trials of seven cropping systems fertilized at three nitrogen levels. They analyzed dryland systems in eastern Nebraska including continuous corn, corn following soybeans, sorghum following soybeans, continuous soybeans and other variations.
Producers get improved yields from traditional corn-soybean rotations.
The flex-cropping model considers the extra fertilizer and work needed to compensate for interrupting this rotation cycle, Helmers said. Their research doesn't factor in real-world complexities such as the cost of machinery needed to be able to completely specialize in any of several crops, depending upon the year. The worksheet, which could be available within a year, could be used for more than planting decisions, Helmers said. When low yields or prices are predicted, producers could take advantage of market options, or producers facing potential catastrophic yield could increase crop insurance coverage, he said. A grant from the USDA National Research Initiative helped fund this project.