Big Corn Bullies
Posted: January 27, 2010
Bigger corn plants may be bullying their smaller brothers, according to a new study by Purdue University.
Research by Purdue agronomist Tony Vyn has shown that corn plants are in a fierce battle with each other for resources.
“There is a hierarchy that is formed, even though the plants are genetically the same and should be equal in size and stature,” Vyn said about his findings, which were published in the early online version of the journal Soil & Tillage Research. “No-till corn yield reductions have little to do with an overall height reduction early in the season. They have more to do with height variability during vegetative growth.”
Vyn said yield losses of up to 14 percent can be attributed to this competition in no-till fields where corn is planted the year after corn. In those fields, the leftover corn residue creates patches of soil with lower temperatures and different water and nutrient content. Seeds planted there are at a disadvantage.
Brock Overstreet Said,
January 30, 2010 @ 12:51 pm
Sounds like Darwin at work to me. Not sure why it took a university agronomist to figure out that bigger and stronger plants tend to shove aside (bully) the weaker plants to get Sun and water. Had he ever walked through and observed a forest he would have seen this at work everywhere.
It’s even at work in my yard where my two big oak trees get most of the light and water.