About “Beyond the Rows”

Beyond the Rows is a Monsanto Company blog focused on one of the world’s most important industries, agriculture. Monsanto employees write about Monsanto’s business, the agriculture industry, and the farmer.avatar Monsantoco Posts

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Americas Farmers Feed

Video: What is Center Pivot Irrigation?

Not sure how many times I’ve had people ask me about these “big spoke things” going across fields, otherwise known as a center pivot and and used in center pivot irrigation. They are definitely easier to understand if a center pivot is running. They are intriguing I admit, and with a span that covers hundreds of acres, they are certainly something to behold.

The connection most people will make is to the sprinkler of sprinkler system in a front yard. And while it’s conceptually similar, the precision with which water used is amazing. The knowledge of the water source is … Full Article »

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Originally published
August 5, 2010 by Janice Person

Corn Earworm

New Corn Technologies Are Taking Down Some Major Pests

If you ask many corn farmers, aside from weather, pests are at the top of the list of factors that hurt their yields. Corn Earworm, Fall Armyworm, and Western Bean Cutworm can all impact yields due to destruction of corn kernels. Lucky for these corn farmers, scientists like the ones at Monsanto are working hard to develop traits and technology to combat these yield inhibitors.

This summer, Monsanto agronomists and farmers are taking a good look at our Genuity corn traits for corn and comparing how they stack up (pun intended) against insect pressure. A couple of weeks ago … Full Article »

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Originally published
August 2, 2010 by Kathleen Manning

Video: Managing Glyphosate Resistant Pigweed – A Success Story

Field days are part of the rural landscape. There are various sorts throughout the summer and for me, they are just getting started. A field day is an opportunity to get a number of people together in one place to see how things are done on a research plot or farm. My first field day of 2010 wasn’t one hosted by the company, it was a University of Arkansas field day at Sid Fogg’s farm in Widener, Arkansas.

The photos contrasting weed issues in 2009 to the control successes in 2010 grabbed people’s attention when the extension service developed a … Full Article »

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Originally published
July 19, 2010 by Janice Person

Detasseling allows one line of corn to fertilize the other, producing a high-yielding hybrid, and prevents the plants from self-pollinating and ruining the hybrid line.

A Quick Lesson in Detasseling

If you’re a farmer or farm kid, you know what detasseling is.

If you’re not, this video courtesy of reporter Mike Brooks at WICS in Springfield, Ill., gives you a good background on detasseling and why seed companies like Monsanto do it.

Detasseling Corn Alive and Well – Fox 55/27 Springfield, ILL

This Twitter search stream gives you a bit more, um, color, about what detasselers are saying this summer.

I was at the corn field while Mike was interviewing Monsanto employees and the workers. The detasseling is quite impressive. I’m not certain I could handle a whole month of … Full Article »

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Originally published
July 16, 2010 by Nick Weber

Video: Planting Drags Out, Moisture Issues at Every Turn

It seems like forever since we had an update on what was happening on Bob Walker’s cotton, corn and soybean farm. Planting that started back in mid-April faced torrential rains in early May. Planting started so long ago and the blog about it was written so long ago, that people have likely forgotten about it. What a luxury that would be for the Walkers. It’s a luxury they do not have for sure. That’s because planters were still rolling at Walker farms throughout the month of June.

“We replanted some yesterday (June 30) but we’re doing alright. It has been … Full Article »

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Originally published
July 15, 2010 by Janice Person

Plowed Peanuts

The Farming May Be Different, But the End Goal is the Same

By Jillian

My favorite thing to do on a summer morning is to take a walk down my dirt road. Most summer days I sleep in but there are a few when I get up right after sunrise. The air is always moist with the sweet smell of earth, the birds are singing and the cows are milling around the water trough. It’s perfect.

I was raised on a peanut and cattle farm in Northwest Florida, it was a great place to grow up—I was surrounded by row-crop farms and cattle, and the beach was just a short drive away.… Full Article »

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Originally published
July 6, 2010 by Monsantoco

Muscatine Ag Students Take Hands On Learning to the Extreme

By Kate

Most farmers don’t have to worry about getting the crops in and making time for their algebra homework but at the Muscatine Ag Learning center in Muscatine, IA, the students face that very time crunch.

The Muscatine Agriculture Learning Center is a unique center that serves Muscatine High School and the community college. High school students in the agriculture program, the majority of which live in an urban environment, get hands on experience running the farm and in some cases, college credit. At the center the students are the backbone of the farming operations.

I was at the … Full Article »

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Originally published
May 24, 2010 by Monsantoco

The Race Against Mother Nature

By Tyne

It’s a race against Mother Nature every spring and fall for farmers across the U.S. This season, some may argue Mother Nature has pulled ahead over the past month. What started out to be a great year for planting with above normal temperatures in many areas across the country, has turned into a waiting game for farmers.

Fred Pond farms in northwest Ohio, and for him, this hurry-up-and-wait game is getting old

Pond has all of his corn in the ground, but only 5 percent of his soybeans planted.

“We’re actually slightly ahead of last year,” Pond said. … Full Article »

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Originally published
May 21, 2010 by Monsantoco

The Photo Tells the Story

I read a lot of farm publications, mostly online, to see what’s happening in agriculture, follow issues and trends, see what’s happening politically in Washington and the state capitals and generally to understand the news environment of this big complex industry we call agriculture.

Every so often, I’ll find a story that isn’t about any of these “big news” things but nonetheless tells the story of agriculture better than anything else.

Like the story of the FFA Tractor Drive in Indiana. Now, there’s nothing especially newsworthy about a tractor drive. But this story included a photo of four generations … Full Article »

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Originally published
May 13, 2010 by Glynn Young

Collapsed levee wall from the recent Tennessee flooding. Water caused the levee to collapse creating that huge hole in center of the levee

Flash Flooding in the U.S.: The Challenges Farmers are Facing

The first weekend in May is always a big one in the Memphis area. It is the start of the month-long Memphis in May festival, and for those of us in the cotton business, it generally signals the start of planting in small communities all around. But this year, the stormy weather threw us a curve that undid months of planning.

Sure, I was disappointed to miss Alison Krauss–a concert I had looked forward to for a while–but for Bob Walker and hundreds of other farmers, the storm and subsequent flooding meant major setbacks far more serious than a rained-out … Full Article »

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Originally published
May 10, 2010 by Janice Person