Fertilization and Spacing of Irrigated Corn on the Belle Fourche Irrigation Project

Corn is one of the major crops grown for livestock feed in western South Dakota. This crop is grown both on irrigated and nonirrigated land. It is used as silage, harvested for grain, and fed as fodder. Because of its importance, corn was one of the crops that received special attention when an off-station research program was started on the Belle Fourche Irrigation Project by the Newell Field Station in 1950. Objectives under consideration were to study the value of nitrogen and phosphorus fertilizer and the effect of plant population on the production of silage and grain corn. The trials conducted and their locations are shown in table 1. Results obtained in the field trials conducted on irrigated land from 1950 through 1954 are discussed in this publication. The principles of proper corn culture are of economic value to farmers on the Belle Fourche Irrigation Project and to neighboring irrigated areas