Paul Helland, one our good friends at FC, in Rake Iowa sent us some interesting information. First off, Paul and his staff are tireless when it comes to putting in demonstration plots, walking fields and observing crop growth.

It's this observation of the crops that lead Paul to wonder why some ears in a row were stubby and some were not. Paul took samples of the ears and sent them to the lab.

In every almost every case, the large ears contain higher quantities of nutrients. Calcium is 3x higher, sulfur is 20% higher!

One may think that such small difference in the nutrients don't make much difference, however those small things add up. Just take a look at the picture!

Since these ears are from the same row there is no yield data, but I think it is safe to say the large ears would yield out 2 to 3 times that of the small poor ears. One other thing to think about, the higher mineral concentration of the larger ears makes it a better feed source, whether for animals or ethanol plants. The grain from the large ears will also store better, avoiding piles of rotting grain.

Thanks for the pictures and lab work Paul!