By Eric Anderson and Nicolle Ritchie
Few things could be more frustrating than to have spent time, money and effort growing a good crop of soybeans only to lose a significant part of the yield during harvest. Losses can occur at several points throughout the harvest process—lodging or pod shatter before harvest, header loss or insufficient threshing and separating. This article focuses on measuring and evaluating gathering loss from the header. For more information on reducing and responding to different types of soybean harvest losses, refer to Michigan State University Extension bulletin E3487 Reducing Soybean Harvest Losses.
Check for harvest loss just behind the header
Around 80% of harvest loss is from gathering. To measure this, harvest at speed long enough to receive a moisture reading. Then stop the combine and back up 15-30 feet to assess the area that has been harvested but has no residue spread on it.
Toss a 1-foot square frame
Use a 1-foot square frame (the one shown in the following picture is made from PVC pipe) to help quantify loss. Randomly drop the frame in 10 different locations across the width of the head. Choose areas that are representative of the majority of the swath. For example, avoid ruts or areas that had thin stands. Record the number of individual soybeans found within the frame for each location. If soybeans are still in a pod, count each soybean in the pod, not the pod as a whole. Note areas where intact pods are left behind. In this picture, six soybeans were found at one frame location.
Few things could be more frustrating than to have spent time, money and effort growing a good crop of soybeans only to lose a significant part of the yield during harvest. Losses can occur at several points throughout the harvest process—lodging or pod shatter before harvest, header loss or insufficient threshing and separating. This article focuses on measuring and evaluating gathering loss from the header. For more information on reducing and responding to different types of soybean harvest losses, refer to Michigan State University Extension bulletin E3487 Reducing Soybean Harvest Losses.
Check for harvest loss just behind the header
Around 80% of harvest loss is from gathering. To measure this, harvest at speed long enough to receive a moisture reading. Then stop the combine and back up 15-30 feet to assess the area that has been harvested but has no residue spread on it.
Toss a 1-foot square frame
Use a 1-foot square frame (the one shown in the following picture is made from PVC pipe) to help quantify loss. Randomly drop the frame in 10 different locations across the width of the head. Choose areas that are representative of the majority of the swath. For example, avoid ruts or areas that had thin stands. Record the number of individual soybeans found within the frame for each location. If soybeans are still in a pod, count each soybean in the pod, not the pod as a whole. Note areas where intact pods are left behind. In this picture, six soybeans were found at one frame location.
Source : msu.edu