MADISON — The Wisconsin Soybean Association (WSA) Soybean Yield Contest is organized to encourage the development of new and innovative management practices that highlight the importance of using sound cultural practices in Wisconsin soybean production systems.
Contest contact: Dr. Shawn Conley 608.800.7056
Contest web page: www.coolbean.info
Contest Committee Members:
Dr. Shawn P. Conley
Patrick Mullooly
CONTEST DESCRIPTION
Any soybean production system can enter in the contest. Two winners will be selected from each of four geographical divisions in the state. Divisions are based on long-term county soybean yield averages. WSA is not responsible for incorrect or missing entries. All rules set forth herein apply to all entries.
CONTEST ENTRANT QUALIFICATIONS
More than one person in a family can enter, but each entry must have a separate entry and fee. The cost is $25 per entry. Entrant must be at least fourteen (14) years of age or older on or before December 1, 2019.
RELEASE OF CONTEST ENTRY FIELD RECORDS
If requested, the entrant agrees to provide records to WSA of their methods of handling and preparing the land; cultivation and weed control methods; insecticides, herbicides, fertilizers and rates of same that are used; the brand and variety of seed, seeding rate; date of planting, type and brand of soybean planter, row width and date of harvesting; and amount of each application and type of irrigation used. Failure to provide such records may lead to disqualification.
CONTEST FIELD AND ENTRY QUALIFICATIONS
Contest field must be in the state of Wisconsin. Contest entry must be at least 5 continuous acres of one variety. Contestant may select the best 5 acres in a soybean field larger than 5 acres and enter that variety. In the interest of Best Management Practices, grass waterways may be a part of the contest plot area. The length of any rows planted in a grass waterway will be included in the harvested row length if soybean rows are planted in the waterway. If soybean rows are not planted in the waterway, the length of each row will not include areas in the waterway. The land entered in the Contest must be owned or leased by the entrant and located in Wisconsin. The variety entered must be currently commercially available.
MULTIPLE CONTEST ENTRIES
Any individual contestant may enter more than one entry in the contest. Any individual can win only one state award.
ENTRY FEE AND DEADLINE Entries must be postmarked by December 1, 2019 to be eligible for this contest. No late entries will be accepted. An entry fee of $25 in the form of a personal check must be received with the Contest Entry Form or the form cannot be accepted.
SUPERVISOR ELIGIBILITY QUALIFICATIONS
A supervisor is required for overseeing all computations and field measurements and must be present during harvesting, weighing, and moisture testing. The Wisconsin Soybean Program will only approve supervisors meeting the following qualifications: FFA Advisor, Agricultural Education Instructor, County Extension Agent or Assistant, Natural Resources Conservation Service senior staff, Farm Service Agency CED/Loan Manager/Officer, Farm Credit Services Officer, Bank Ag Loan Officer, Private Crop Consultant, College of Agriculture Instructor, American Society of Farm Managers accredited farm manager, Crop Insurance Agents/Adjustors, or retired individual with listed job title. Also current Soybean Association Production & Stewardship and Grower Services Action Team members and WSA Board members are eligible. A supervisor cannot have financial or direct business ties to the entrant or a company that sells agribusiness supplies, i.e. totally independent nor employed by the entrant. Call Dr. Conley when unsure of your selected supervisor’s qualifications. The supervisor name must be on the Contest entry form along with their title, address, telephone number, and email address. WSA reserves the right to contact harvest supervisor to validate compliance with contest rules. WSA ALSO RESERVES THE RIGHT, WITH ADVANCE NOTIFICATION, TO OBSERVE ANY HARVEST.
CONTEST AWARDS
Trophies and cash prizes will be awarded to the first ($1,000) and second ($500) place winners in each geographic division (see map attached to entry form). The winner is the entry that has the highest soybean yield based on bushels per acre at 13% moisture. In the event of a tie, both entrants will be recognized as co-winners. Each entrant is eligible to win only one trophy and cash prize in the contest. If an entrant enters two or more entries and all entries place as a winner or runner-up, a trophy and cash prize will be awarded only for the highest yielding entry. Awards will be presented at the Corn/Soy Expo held in Wisconsin Dells in January 2020.
SOYBEAN QUALITY CONTEST
The Soybean Quality Contest is optional to enter and there is no additional fee, however, a producer must enter the Soybean Yield Contest in order to enter the Soybean Quality Contest. To enter the Soybean Quality Contest, entrants must select the Quality Option on the Soybean Yield Contest Harvest Form, as well as provide a grain sample for quality analysis. The sample for soybean quality must be taken from the soybeans that were harvested for the Soybean Yield Contest in 2019. A onepound sample is needed for testing and should be sent in no later than December 1, 2019. One $500 cash award will be presented statewide to the highest protein plus oil yield per acre (measured in lbs. per acre).
WI 100 BUSHEL AWARD
The first grower that achieves 100 bu/a or more in the WI Soybean Yield Contest will be awarded a $2,500 check. In the case of multiple entries achieving 100 bu/a or more, the cash award will go to the highest overall yield.
CONTEST RESULTS
No information on the Contest results will be released until all results are finalized. There will be no exceptions. Results will be released on or before December 31, 2019. Decisions of WSA’s Contest Committee in all matters are final. The WSA committee reserves the right to disqualify any entry without a refund for violation of any rules.
REFUNDS
No refunds will be issued. Incomplete entries may be disqualified. WSA reserves the right to have a designated representative view and/or inspect, with prior notice, any field entered at any time. WSA also reserves the right to disqualify any entry in violation of the WSA Contest Rules.
HARVEST RULES
The contest entry must be from a field of soybeans 5 or more acres in size of one variety. The contest area may be any shape, but must be in one continuous block of soybean.
• Entrants and harvest supervisors are responsible for giving accurate row lengths for odd shape plots.
• All end rows/turning rows and the equal number of outermost rows on each side may not be a part of the selected 1.25 acre contest plot.
• A total of 1.25 or more acres must be harvested.
A supervisor must be present at harvest. The supervisors are responsible for completing all computations and field measurements and must be present during harvesting, weighing (gross and tare), and moisture testing. The entrant is responsible for mailing the information. The supervisor must require the entrant to run their combine and any transfer augers to be certain they are empty prior to harvesting the contest area. All wagons or trucks must be checked to make certain they are empty.
A full combine swath width shall be harvested, then two times that width skipped, another swath harvested and two times that width skipped and so on until a minimum of 1.25 acres has been harvested.
EXAMPLE:
20’ head Harvest one 20’ swath, skip 40’, harvest 20’ – skip 40’ – repeat as needed
HARVEST: The entrant selects the rows for the first pass; however, the supervisor needs to observe that an acceptable number of rows remain to establish a harvest pattern as described above. If the field is contoured or terraced, the area left unharvested must be in each contour or terrace interval, adjacent and equal to the area originally harvested.
MEASURING: Preferred measurement tools are a tape or chain. Measuring wheels are not acceptable for measurement. Each measurement must be recorded on the Contest Entry form. Proper tape and chain measurements are taken with the measurement tool pulled taut but not off of the ground surface.
ROW LENGTH: If the rows are all the same length, measure the length of one row and record same length for each of the rows harvested. If the rows are not all the same length, measure down the center of each set harvested and record the length for each of the rows in the set. (On pivot irrigation do not subtract wheel space).
ROW WIDTH: Record the row width based on spacing of the planter row units, such as 7.5”, 15”, 20”, 30”, 36”, 38”, etc. In the interest of Best Management Practices, grass waterways may be a part of the contest plot area. The length of any rows planted in a grass waterway will be included in the harvested row length if soybean rows are planted in the waterway. If soybean rows are not planted in the waterway, the length of each row will not include areas in the waterway.
CALCULATING ACRES HARVESTED: The total row length times the row width divided by 43,560 (square feet in one acre) equals acres harvested. EXAMPLE: Four-row harvester, 20 rows harvested, each row 1,210 feet long. Row width 2.5 feet. 1,210 x 20 = 24,200 x 2.5 divided by 43,560 = 1.3889 acres.
WEIGHING: All soybeans must be weighed on a state-inspected scale by the supervisor(s) or the supervisor(s) overseeing. On-farm scales must be state inspected. Original weigh ticket (no photocopies) must be attached to the Contest Form. It must have the name of the company where the weighing was done and the name of the person doing the weighing. WEIGH WAGONS ARE PROHIBITED.
MOISTURE TESTING: An experienced person must make a moisture determination of a representative sample of the soybean. Moisture percent must be listed on weight ticket or attach a moisture ticket.
CALCULATING YIELD (All calculations must be carried to four decimal places): First, find the number of bushels of soybean harvested, corrected to 13.0% moisture, then divide by the acres harvested to get bushels per acre. To calculate bushels harvested, corrected to 13.0% moisture, take the total pounds of soybean harvested, times the difference of 100% minus the percent moisture in the soybean, and divide by 52.20 (pounds of dry soybean in one bushel of 13.0% soybean).
EXAMPLE: 6,150 pounds of soybean at 18.75% moisture harvested from 1.3889 acres.
6,150 x 0.8125 (100% minus 18.75%) divided by 52.2 = 95.1786 bushels of soybean at 13.0% moisture 95.1786 divided by 1.3889 = 68.5280 bushels per acre.
Click the link for an entry form: 2019-WSMB-Soybean-Yield-Contest
— Wisconsin Soybean Association
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