If you’ve had salt issues in soybeans, you’ll love some of our new varieties, as many contain the chloride excluder trait (or salt excluder gene, as some people will call it), targeting your salty, slow-draining, or irrigated ground.
This is a BIG deal for the industry as soybeans can’t naturally tolerate chlorides very well. This is not IDC (Iron Deficiency Chlorosis) tolerance, but often you see a “salt ring” around the outside edge of IDC pockets where the excluder beans shine. If you don’t have salt problems, you’ll be excited to try some of the new racehorse beans we are introducing to our lineup. Without question, this is by far the best soybean portfolio we’ve ever been able to offer you.
The life cycle of a soybean variety is pretty short these days. There are several huge breeding programs we work with, and they are constantly coming up with tons of new varieties at all maturities. My job is to find the very best ones to fit the needs of your farm. Each year, there are new traits, exciting improvements in defensive characteristics, and brand new crosses that make this task fun and exciting. Because of all the advancements each year, we always like to plant a good amount of new varieties on our farm to capture higher yields and more successful fields.
We expect very aggressive early pricing on all soybean trait packages in September as they jockey for market share in the U.S. These deals will likely not last long, as we expect price increases late fall into December. Most seed companies plan to be higher in price on soybeans compared to last year because the market price is up by well over $4 per bushel. Here is some of what we’re bringing to the lineup for 2022.
21 New Hefty Brand XtendFlex Varieties!
- XtendFlex is a trait that came out last year, so it’s no surprise we’re adding new varieties into the Hefty Brand product lineup, as this is just the sophomore class of varieties to graduate from the breeding programs.
- We kept 13 varieties from last year’s new releases and expanded our XtendFlex offering to a total of 34 varieties ranging from Group 0.08 up to Group 4.8.
- Our Hefty Brand XtendFlex Soybeans include 5 varieties with the chloride excluder trait.
16 New Zinesto
Enlist E3 Varieties!
- Building on the well-established Zinesto Enlist Soybean lineup, 16 new varieties increase the portfolio to a total of 54 varieties from Group 0.06 to Group 4.9.
- Zinesto Brand Enlist Soybeans include 8 varieties with the chloride excluder trait.
Defensive Characteristics: “The Real Difference Makers”
Everyone likes to talk yield, but that’s just table stakes. Defense is what helps you avoid a disaster. Here are some things to keep in mind.
Nematode Protection
Watch for varieties with RKN (root knot nematode) protection in the south. In the north, the PI88.788 source of SCN (soybean cyst nematode) resistance is starting to be less effective. The Peking source is beginning to yield well enough to warrant use as a replacement.
Standability
This is one of the most overlooked characteristics in soybeans. We watch this closely and pick soybean varieties for you that will stand in most conditions. It improves harvestability and lessens disease pressure from things like sclerotinia white mold. Of course, having base saturation potassium levels over 4% (and preferably over 6%) makes an enormous difference, too.
Other Issues
Whether you are looking for improvements in tolerance to SDS (Sudden Death Syndrome), IDC, SCN, or specific diseases, we have soybeans that can help you. Of course, our Hefty Complete Soybean Seed Treatment provides a big boost, as well.