North Carolina’s 2015 wheat crop is turning out to be a mixed bag with some yields topping 100 bushels per acre and other yields falling as low as 30 bushels per acre, according to Ron Heiniger, Extension cropping system specialist at North Carolina State University.

“There is going to be some really good wheat this year, and then there are going to be some dogs,” Heiniger said at the 2015 Eastern North Carolina Small Grains Field Day held May 21 at Griffin Farms in Washington, N.C.

“Those who got it done early; those who paid attention to the key principles, they are going to be successful and they’re going to be happy with their wheat, and they’re going to be happy with the profit they are going to make on wheat this year. Those who fell behind or didn’t pay attention to detail are going to be a little sad about the wheat crop this year,” Heiniger said.

In his comments at the field day, Heiniger offered key principles for farmers to follow to achieve top yields year in and year out. “There are two things that you have to do to be the master of your wheat crop,” he stressed.

“The  first thing that you have to do is you have to have the optimal density by GS-30 to have enough plants to sustain big enough heads to give you whatever yield potential you have in that season. We have to have the right number of plants and those plants need to have heads that produce 30 to 40 seeds per head or greater,” Heiniger explained.

“The second principle is to fertilize that wheat crop so you have enough nitrogen and nutrients to make that wheat go all the way to maturity without turning yellow so that it actually matures due to temperature rather than due to nutrients on the crop,” he said.

To achieve top yields, both seeding rate and nitrogen management are critical, according to Heiniger. Applying pre-plant nitrogen in the fall is an important first step in nutrient management for achieving top yields.

Pre-plant nitrogen needs to work clear until February to help the plant reach full maturity and optimum yield. “Then you need another shot of nitrogen in March, depending on your density, to get you to those higher yields,” Heiniger said, stressing that 110 total units of  nitrogen is not enough and 150 units is more likely needed.

“Whatever your density is going to be, you need to adjust your nitrogen to count for that density. That’s not easy because of weather,” he said.

This winter, temperatures went down to the 20s and 30s, where it was difficult to grow wheat. “Three years ago, we had a warm winter and it wasn’t hard to make wheat grow at all. We were trying to pull the reins in and slow the growth down,” Heiniger said.

It is in conditions like that when plant growth regulators have a place in nitrogen management, Heiniger added. Still, weather is always a challenge for wheat production.

“You don’t know how much growth you are going to get during at wintertime. Therefore it’s difficult to know how fast to get that wheat moving in the fall to be able to get to that optimal density at head time,” Heiniger said.

The Eastern North Carolina Small Grains Field Day drew a crowd of 150 people. It was the last of five small grain field days held across North Carolina beginning in March and ending in May, with each of the state’s wheat growing regions represented.