Many growers are now planting soybeans later than they intended to. Whether it is because wet weather prevented fields from getting planted in the first place or excessive wet weather is requiring a replant on soybean or cotton acres, questions are emerging about what maturity group can be used at this point in the planting season. 

=        Optimal maturity group for late May/early June planting: What does our preliminary planting date data suggest? Last year across the state, we saw our highest yields with a late MGIV and mid MGV planted from mid-April through mid-June. I will emphasize this was a late MGIV (4.9) and one year of data. We have limited information on planting an earlier maturing soybean variety as we move into June planting dates because this has not traditionally be done in North Carolina. More information will be generated in the next few years on this topic.

=        What do we know from our NC State University OVT data? We are somewhere between our typical planting dates for the full-season and double-crop soybean OVT tests. Data from this program over the past several years indicates that a high-yielding soybean variety can be selected from a MGIV to MGVII for planting both full season and double crop, but the full season trends over the past three years have leaned towards higher yields with a MGIV and V then later maturing varieties when planted in the middle of May. Double crop results have been variable, with a flat yield response to MG in two of the past three years, meaning growers have some flexibility in planting a mid MGIV to MGVII in a double-crop situation. A excellent tool has been developed by the NC Soybean Producers Association using the NC State OVT Soybean data to aid in soybean variety selection.