The Effects of Swathing Wheat on the Date of Harvest, Yield and Seed Quality

In 1975 approximately 350,000 acres were double-cropped using small grain and soybeans in Kentucky. Due to the low acreage of winter barley (48,000 acres) most of the soybeans were either planted by no-till or conventional means following winter wheat. The major problem with winter wheat in a double-cropping system is that the date of planting for soybeans is delayed. Research at the West Kentucky Experiment Station at Princeton indicates that this delay can reduce soybean yields from 7 to 11 bushels per acre depending upon the soybean variety used. The research at Princeton also indicates no reduction in soybean yields following Barsoy barley; however disease and winter-kill problems have reduced acreage in Kentucky in recent years. If barley fits the farming program, however, it could still be considered on part of the acreage double-cropped