Late this fall, American Agriculturist asked most companies marketing seed corn in the Northeast to describe their top five hybrid "picks" for 2015. That was a tough assignment considering the many micro-climates and crop uses of the marketplace.

Twelve companies responded and completed their assignments. The following results were also published in the November and December magazine issues. Details of hybrid strong points are provided by the sources. Note: Comparative Relative Maturity, or CRM, and Central Corn Belt, or CCB, relative maturity ratings may not be the same.

HIGH-YIELDERS: In response to growing farmer interest in cover crops, the seed corn industry is seemingly shifting toward shorter season hybrids – with little to no yield penalty.

1st Choice Seeds
* FC 397 3122 E-Z: Excellent 104-day RM product for high grain yield and silage. This Agrisure refuge corn is broadly adaptable for highly productive to average productive fields, and can be positioned as a good delayed-harvest hybrid.

* FC 565 C: 108-day RM conventional hybrid representing the newest class of germplasm. It has impressive high yield with late-season stalk and roots plus very good grain quality. It can be planted at higher populations on better soils to maximize yield potential.

* FC 690 C: Has the newest germplasm available for a 110-day hybrid. It can produce outstanding yields under heat and drought stress, as well as in high-yield environments. It's widely adaptable with good stalk, root strength and grain quality.

* FC 805 C: A must-use conventional lead hybrid at 112-day RM. It's widely adaptable germplasm was best of class rising to the top of yield index in and out of stress in multiple environments with good late-season intactness, superior test weight and consistent performance.

* FC 808 C: 113-day RM hybrid for eastern soils for corn-after-corn with outstanding yield potential across multiple environments. It has excellent stalks, superior root ratings, and consistent yields and plant stature under stress conditions.

Augusta Seed
* A2847: 97 RM medium-tall plant with tremendous grain quality and very high yield potential. With its excellent emergence, early vigor and quick dry-down, it's a good choice for those who plant early and harvest early. It also has high tonnage and excellent feed value for those seeking an early silage corn.

* A2954:104 RM hybrid, excellent in stressed and optimal environments. With tremendous ear flex, it allows for lower populations on tougher soils, but good top-end yield potential if planted under irrigation or in bottom land. Expect good standability and quick dry down, but not recommended for corn after corn.

* A5262: 112 RM medium-tall plant that's extraordinarily healthy and high yielding even under stress. That's why it has demanded to be in the seed lineup.  It routinely puts on 20 rows of grain around and will have deep kernels. It's a top yielder for grain or silage.

* A5565: This 115 RM corn is the original Dominator Class hybrid. High yield potential and excellent standability, plus very good grain quality are key traits of this short plant with low ear placement. Yet it's very leafy and has excellent tonnage and digestibility numbers for silage purposes, but not recommended for areas prone to green snap.

* A5566:116 RM dual-purpose hybrid with very good stalks and excellent stay-green, plus strong tolerance for Gray Leaf Spot and NCLB. Grain quality and test weight are well above average with excellent yield potential. Exceptional plant health allows for extended harvest time for silage.

Channel
* 197-68STXRIB: Versatile 97 RM, dual-purpose blend with the Genuity SmartStax RIB Complete traits. With strong stalks and roots, plus great overall plant health for corn-on-corn rotations, this hybrid has outstanding yield potential across much of the Northeast.

* 201-00DGVT2PRIB: 101RM blend with the Genuity VT Double PRO and DroughtGard RIB Complete traits. Very good vigor allows for early planting. Good performance potential in low- to high-yielding environments with best performance at 30,000 to 35,000 seed-planting populations.

* 203-44STXRIB: 103RM Genuity SmartStax RIB Complete blend with strong top-end yield potential as grain and silage. It maximizes yield potential with moderate to high planting populations.

* 207-13VT3PRIB: 107RM dual-purpose blend with the Genuity VT TriplePRO RIB Complete trait package with very good vigor plus tremendous yield potential in high fertility and high yield environments. A fungicide is advised where Grey Leaf Spot is a concern.

* 209-53STXRIB: 109RM for-grain blend with the Genuity SmartStax RIB Complete traits. An excellent fit for any rotation, this hybrid has very good disease tolerance and strong stalks. This early flowering hybrid is very stable for medium to high planting populations.

Dekalb
* DKC46-20RIB: 96-RM product with consistent high-yield potential over a wide geography. It has excellent NCLB tolerance and can be used on most soil types and rotations. It's very strong for early grain or silage, with good heat and drought tolerance.

* DKC52-30RIB: 102-RM hybrid offering fast dry-down and flexibility for tough acres and high yield potential. This excellent dual-purpose product has very strong health characteristics for disease-prone corn- after-corn acres.

* DKC57-75RIB: 107-RM product widely adapted for grain and silage throughout Northeast, with ample ear flex for lower populations. It has top-end yield potential for better soils and excellent low-end stability for tougher soils. Droughtgard version is available.

* DKC62-08RIB: 112-RM corn with outstanding yield potential and a favorite for corn yield contests.  It has excellent ear flex for lower populations and variable soils, plus very good heat and drought tolerance. It's also well suited for top end, high production acres and thrives with added inputs.

* DKC65-19RIB: 115-RM plant with excellent integrity for delayed harvest plus wide adaptation with good ear flex for variable soils and lower populations. While a shorter plant that lends well to reduced tillage, it's very robust and consistently produces silage with high yield, starch and digestibility. 

Doeblers
* RPM 444XY: 95 CRM conventional hybrid (organic optional) with strong agronomics and excellent plant health. With excellent drought tolerance and consistent yield potential in variable soil types, it exhibits very good test weight and digestibility and will work well for grain or silage.

* RPM 4115AM: 101 CRM, with Optimum AQUAmax and AcreMax genetics, providing excellent drought tolerance plus refuge-in-bag protection against above ground insects. The refuge component of AcreMax hybrids are treated with Poncho 1250/Votivo to provide maximum rootworm and nematode protection. With excellent test weight plus excellent silage digestibility, it has exceptional plant health and strong agronomics allowing for adaptability south of zone.

* RPM 561XY: 105 CRM conventional hybrid with strong agronomics, exceptional plant health. Excellent drought stress tolerance plus consistent top-end yield potential and grain quality make it well adapted to the Northeast and a maturity group yield leader.

* RPM 5015AM: 110 CRM corn with Optimum AQUAmax and AcreMax genetics with refuge-in-bag protection from above ground insects. A medium-stature plant with strong agronomics and good plant health, it's sure to be a maturity group yield leader with excellent grain quality and test weight.

* RPM 5315AMX: At 113 CRM, this Optimum AcreMax Xtra hybrid for grain or silage provides refuge-in-bag protection from above and below ground insects. Strong agronomics plus girthy ears and deep kernels offers top-end yield potential and responds well in high-yield environments.

DuPont Pioneer
* P9188AMX: 91-CRM Optimum AcreMax product with above ground integrated refuge protection.  It offers a below average plant stature, good test weight and northern corn leaf blight resistance.

* P0157AMX:  101-CRM Optimum AQUAmax tech product with high yield offering above and below ground integrated refuge protection, strong drought tolerance and disease resistance. It's a great dual-purpose option for grain or silage.

* P0506AM: Top-end yield potential in a 105-CRM Optimum AcreMax option. This product has good disease resistance. With superior drought tolerance, it's well suited to diverse soil types.

* P1197AM: A 111-CRM leader Optimum AcreMax and Optimum AcreMax Xtreme offering with excellent stability across diverse environments. It has outstanding disease tolerance and late-season plant health making it a great option under most crop rotations.

* P1180XR: One of three new brown midrib hybrid introductions, an excellent choice for dairy producers seeking high levels of forage quality coupled with high yields and excellent agronomics.  It has good emergence and early-season vigor for diverse soil types.  .

Growmark FS
* FS36R47VT2P: 86-day Genuity VT Double Pro hybrid is a new short-season hybrid that does it all -- superior yields for maturity, excellent standability and top-notch quality. Push up populations on this one and watch it grow!  

* FS 43R43SS: 93-day yield champion with long-ear looks to prove it, plus superior stalks and roots. For silage, it has super milk return per acre, superior whole plant dry-down and can handle high populations.

* FS 50R40SS: 100-day hybrid offers rock-solid grain performance, sporting superior Staygreen and late-season intactness. An excellent choice for corn-on-corn, it handles a wide range of soil types and fertility levels with consistently high yields.

* FS 53R41DG2P: First DroughtGard hybrid offering European corn borer  protection, excellent yields plus good performance in drought and stress conditions. This product also performs well as silage, with superb whole plant digestibility and grain-rich forage.

* FS 62R43VT2P: A fuller season VT Double Pro hybrid for outstanding grain and silage yields. It's fast out of the ground and has excellent performance under drought. It responds with even more yield in high input management situations.

King's AgriSeeds
* Masters Choice 4050: A 90-day RM, flex-ear hybrid with floury grain and great disease resistance. Expect big yields with great fiber digestibility and high starch availability.

* Masters Choice 4880: 98-day RM, great yield potential with high fiber digestibility. Extremely floury grain for feeding first in the fall. 

* Masters Choice 5250: 102-day RM corn with consistent top-end yield with full flex white cob ears. Very high digestibility and extremely floury grain for first fall feeding. 

* Masters Choice 5370: 103-day hybrid with great yield potential, high fiber digestibility and floury grain – another fall "Feed First". 

* Masters Choice 5300: 103-day top choice organic hybrid with outstanding yield potential, high digestibility and extremely floury grain.

Mycogen Seeds
* F2F379: SmartStax Refuge Advanced brown midrib hybrid with a medium-tall plant and full canopy. This 95-day corn features solid agronomics, excellent tonnage and good neutral detergent fiber digestibility.

* F2F499: 99-day SmartStax Refuge Advanced BMR hybrid with excellent starch, NDFD, ear fill and husk coverage. It works well in continuous corn or corn/soybean rotations.

* TMF2L395: 94-day SmartStax Refuge Advanced silage hybrid. It offers strong tonnage potential and excellent disease tolerance to northern corn leaf blight and gray leaf spot. Strong emergence and early vigor make it a good choice for reduced tillage.

* TMF2L537: Tall 101-day hybrid with medium ear placement and attractive eye appeal. Featuring SmartStax Refuge Advanced technology, it offers great early season vigor and excellent yield and quality.

* TMF2R198: 85-day SmartStax Refuge Advanced hybrid with has excellent digestibility and starch scores. This tall plant's semi-flex ear provides flexibility across variable plant densities.

Seedway
* SW3654 RR: 90-day CCB dual-purpose silage and grain performance with Roundup Ready Corn 2 genetics. The medium-statured, showy hybrid exhibits excellent flexibility, good ear-tip fill and clean grain.

* SW3780: 93-day CCB corn with Genuity SmartStax RIB, a complete trait package with refuge in bag for high grain yields. It exhibits strong agronomics and fast start, plus works well in any tillage system. 

* SW3808: 95-day CCB dual-purpose hybrid with Genuity VT Triple PRO RIB that's widely adapted and early flowering – a good Northeast fit. With a good disease package, this medium-to-tall plant is good for silage.

* SW5554 GT: 105 -day CCB Agrisure dual-purpose product with glyphosate tolerance. Good agronomics plus wide adaptation and versatile performance team up with high grain yield potential with fast grain dry-down.

* SW 6620: 109-day CCB hybrid with Genuity SmartStax RIB Complete genetics. Exceptional grain and silage yield potential is packaged with solid agronomic and maximum insect protection package. Good plant size enables silage use.

Syngenta/NK
* N35T-3111: 95-day RM maturity group yield leader. This tall hybrid has very strong stalks and roots for excellent grain quality and test weight. It works across a wide range of soil types. Solid season-long agronomics make this a customer favorite.

* N37R-3111: A 97-day RM that delivers top-end yields with very good grain quality and test weight on highly productive acres. Very good emergence and early vigor make it a good choice for early planting and no-till.

* N45P-3011A: Agrisure Artesian 101-day RM hybrid maximizes yields when it rains and increasing yields when it doesn't. Tall with solid stalks and roots and good early vigor, it's best when planted early as a full-season hybrid. Medium to high populations allow it to reach very high yields for its maturity.

* N58S-5222 EZ Refuge: 108-day RM short plant with strong roots and good stalks. This high-yielding grain hybrid works well across a wide range of soils and has very good drought stress tolerance. With Agrisure Duracade rootworm protection, it's an excellent choice for corn-on-corn.

* N70J-3111A: This 112-day RM hybrid continues to deliver outstanding yields. A new combination of Agrisure Artesian and Agrisure Viptera traits delivers best-in-class insect protection plus ability to mitigate moisture stress risks. This tall, high-yielding hybrid performs best on high-yield acres.

TA Seeds
* TA255: 85-RM hybrid from a new family with excellent dual-purpose characteristics plus strong stalks and roots. This hybrid has top-end yield capability with a fixed ear and higher populations with conventional or Agrisure GT genetics. If planting under 90-RM corn, it'll take you to the next yield level.

* TA545-33EZ: A one-bag refuge solution with standout 104-RM genetics for above and below ground pests. As a semi-flex, this tall dual-purpose hybrid has been winning yield trials in grain and silage. It's offered as an untreated conventional, treated conventional and Agrisure GT.

* TA566: New 106-RM hybrid flex-ear family with excellent top-end yield and test weights plus quality to match. It's offered as untreated conventional, treated conventional, Agrisure GT and Agrisure Viptera 3111 genetics. It's a "must try" multipurpose hybrid for the discerning grain, silage, or ear-picking producer.

* TA583-28RIB: 108-RM SmartStax dual-purpose winner of independent testing from Massachusetts to Virginia. This medium-statured plant has achieved award-winning yields via conventional, Genuity VT Double Pro RIB, and Genuity SmartStax RIB trait packages.

* TA625: 110-RM, true-flex hybrid with phenomenal disease resistance. Available in Agrisure GT and Agrisure Viptera 3110 packages, it puts on girth throughout stress and drought conditions by combining parentage excelling in full-season maturities and earlier maturing day lengths.