DATE: 4/15/2005

CONTACT: Dr. Jim Frederick, (843) 662-3526

Dr. Jay Chapin, (803) 284-3343

WRITER: Tom Lollis, (803) 284-3343, ext. 241

Contests produce top notch yields from S.C. farmers

CLEMSON – Winners of South Carolina crop yield contests produced some top notch results for corn, soybeans, wheat and peanuts in 2004.

“For the first time in history we’ve had two consecutive years with statewide corn yields averaging 100 bushels an acre,” said Jim Frederick, Clemson Extension agronomist at the Pee Dee Research and Education Center.

“It just goes to show what South Carolina producers can do when they use good, Extension-recommended, research-proven management practices, and get some cooperation from Mother Nature in the form of timely rains,” he said.

Ten Palmetto Corn Yield Contest entries exceeded the 200 bushel mark, led by C. W. Backman of Orangeburg County in the irrigated category with 272.2 bushels an acre using the variety Pioneer 31N27.

Winning the non-irrigated category was Justice Family Farms of Clarendon County with the variety Pioneer 31G98.

Also exceeding 200 bushel yields were Jameson Farms of Orangeburg County in two separate entries, W. R. Simpson of Clarendon County, Myron Brubaker of Bamberg County, David H. Garrick of Orangeburg County, Steve Gamble of Clarendon County, Edwin Dargan of Darlington County and Ricky Kneece of Lexington County.

While soybean producers in South Carolina had an average year of around 27 bushels an acre on 520,000 acres, the state yield contest winners were both well over 60 bushels an acre, according to David Gunter, Clemson Extension agent in Darlington County, who coordinated the contest with help from Nancy King of the Department of Agriculture.

Oak III Farms of Clarendon County won the dryland division with an entry of 78.09 bushels an acre using the variety Pioneer 97B52. Second was Bob Jordan of Lee County, with an entry of 68.98 bushels and third was H&F Farms of Florence County with 68.93.

The top three in the irrigated soybean yield category were all from Orangeburg County. William Jameson was first with 64.54 bushels an acre using DynaGro 33Z74. Ray Jameson was second with 59.4 bushels and C. W. Backman was third at 59.27.

Statewide wheat yields averaged around 44 bushels an acre on approximately 180,000 acres for 2004, according to Jay Chapin, Clemson Extension entomologist and small grain specialist. The state record is 50 bushels an acre, set in 1997.

Jameson Farms of Orangeburg County was the state yield champion, harvesting 94.72 bushels an acre for its contest entry with the variety Pioneer 26R38. Finishing second was Thomas Lee of Clarendon County with a yield of 84.55 bushels an acre with AGS 2000. In third was L&S Farms, also of Clarendon County, with a yield of 84.29 bushels.

Peanuts are a growing success story for South Carolina farmers, according to Chapin, who also works with that crop. Producers averaged a record state yield of 3,400 pounds per acre on approximately 33,000 acres in 2004.

Chapin expects peanuts on more than 50,000 acres this year, a virtual explosion compared to no more than 9,000 acres in 2002, the last year of the peanut quota program.

Hayne Haigler & Sons of Cameron was tops in the state yield contest in 2004, with 5,521 pounds per acre on 222 acres, mostly the variety NCV-11. Ricky Kneece was District II champion with 5,341 pounds per acre on 398 acres, with NCV-11 and Perry.

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