Despite drought affecting many areas of the state, the 2022 Kansas Corn Yield Contest was highly competitive. Top yield contest entries for the Kansas Corn Yield Contest came from Ryan Jagels of Finney County in the irrigated division, with a yield of 323.7 bushels per acre; and Jeff Koelzer of Pottawatomie County in the dryland division, with a yield of 308.96 bushels per acre.

“Improvements in technology and management have produced not only record Kansas corn yields, but more importantly, allowed for relatively impressive corn yields when farmers are faced with drought conditions and high input prices,” says Josh Roe, Kansas Corn vice president of market development and policy. “The farmers that participated in this year’s yield contest exhibit the very best of the technology and management techniques available."

This is the second year for the combined state-level yield contest and National Corn Yield Contest, bringing greater competition and entries. The state contest awards dryland and irrigated winners in ten districts, along with one statewide dryland and one statewide irrigated winner. The winners will be recognized at the Kansas Corn Symposium on Jan. 26 in Salina. The Kansas Corn Yield Contest is sponsored by Kansas Corn and Kansas State University Research and Extension. 

The Kansas Corn Yield Contest was created to recognize high-yielding Kansas corn farmers and gain information to improve practices and increase efficiency for greater sustainability and profitability. Sharing the data collected among Kansas farmers benchmarks the corn yields and provides information for improving management practices.

Here are the 2022 Kansas Corn Yield Contest results:

Overall state yield winners

Northwest District 1

Irrigated. First place, Brett Oelke, Sheridan County, 296.78 bushels acre, Pioneer P1366AML; second place, Taylor Brack, Sherman County, 285.76 bushels acre, Pioneer P1366Q; and third place, Brett Oelke, Sheridan County, 282.51 bushels per acre, Pioneer P1278Q.

West Central District 2

Irrigated. First place, Matthew Long, Wichita County, 239 bushels per acre, Golden Harvest G13N18-3111; and second place, Matthew Long, Wichita County, 223.51 bushels per acre, LG Seeds LG66C44-SSRIB.

Southwest District 3

Irrigated. First place, Ryan Jagels, Finney County, 323.7 bushels per acre, Pioneer P1718AML; second place, Ryan Jagels, Finney County, 322.1 bushels per acre, Pioneer P1847AML; and third place, Grant Webber, Haskell County, 321.78 bushels per acre, Dekalb DKC70-27RIB.

North Central District 4

Central District 5

Irrigated. First place, Chad Penner, McPherson County, 291.45 bushels per acre, Pioneer P1511AM.

South Central District 6

Northeast District 7

East Central District 8

North Northeast District 10

Dryland. First place, Jason Taylor, Doniphan County, 302.31 bushels per acre, Taylor Seed Farms 9913; second place, Jason Taylor, Doniphan County, 295.53 bushels per acre, Taylor Seed Farms 8013; and third place, Joe Elias, Atchison County, 289.77.42 bushels per acre, AgriGold A643-52VT2RI.

Source: Kansas Corn