Hundreds of retailers and growers learned about technical solutions to growing corn and soybeans during the Syngenta Learning Center Demonstration Days held in Iowa and Illinois this past August. The field days, conducted by the crop protection and seeds group of the company, focused on integrated research efforts. The Learning Centers are 75- to 80-acre research areas near Wyoming, IL, and Keystone, IA.

“We're working with our customers to better understand agronomic performance of integrated corn and soybean production systems,” says Jon Scharingson, Syngenta Seeds integrated solutions manager. To do that, researchers at the Learning Centers have conducted more than 15 corn and soybean studies, including trials on soybean fertilization, corn hybrids, Asian soybean rust, and planting dates and tillage.

Growing 100-bu. soybeans is one example of efforts to better understand what barriers exist to high yields and what agronomic tools can be used to make customers more efficient and ultimately profitable.

“Variety selection, early planting and scouting are the three major components to growing high-yielding soybeans,” says Palle Pedersen, soybean extension agronomist at Iowa State University. “The key is knowing the interaction of weeds, insects and pathogens to achieve maximum yields.”

The Learning Centers will be open through the growing seasons. Retailers should contact a local Syngenta sales representative for more information.

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