Lending A Hand

David Jordan

As we move into the 2026 crop, we know margins are thin. I’ve been trying to come up with a silver bullet that removes all the risk but one has never emerged. In some ways, this has been a career-long pursuit that never materializes. But it makes sense that the silver bullet wouldn’t emerge. It’s more complicated. I often refer to a list as keys to success when it comes to growing peanuts. I’m going to go through some of it here. I’ll get to other points later in the year.

Soil pH needs to be around 6.0. I recently went through the economics of this in a post on our Extension portal. Not only do peanuts respond to higher pH in positive ways, to get a positive response to other inputs like gypsum and inoculant for nitrogen fixation, the pH needs to be around 6.0. At lower pH values, we often gain marginally at best from the gypsum we apply and most likely the inoculant we use when pH is low.

Our crop rotations are set at this point, and I know some growers have established less-than-ideal crop sequences going into 2026. The reasons are valid for sure. The short-term economic realities outweigh the somewhat lofty goals of the ivory-towered agronomist. This will create some risk in both the short and long term, but that is our reality right now. Given peanut yields might be off some from an ideal rotation sequence (if not now, certainly in the future), we need to pay attention to the other inputs and practices we have and squeeze as much out of them as possible.

In addition to adjusting pH to the correct level, no matter what the contract price happens to be, we very often get a solid return on fertilizer inputs. I include inoculant for nitrogen fixation in this bucket. The key is a recent soil test. If the soil test calls for elements, there is very likely a positive return on those elements even though fertilizer prices are higher now than in recent years. We need to avoid yield loss from inoculant failures. In addition to in-furrow inoculant, peat-based products with seed are important to include. The 35% reduction in yield from the yellow row on an eight or twelve-row pattern adds up across fields. In new ground especially, nitrogen cost is so high and the rate needed more than you might think (500 pounds of ammonium sulfate to correct a deficiency), take the time to add the peat-based product for insurance.

We might think that cutting back on seeding rates is a good thing to do when we face lower contract prices. But it is not. Yields and market grades are often lower at lower seeding rates. Market grades tend to be lower because we have a significant lateral crop at lower seeding rates. While incremental, we do see higher returns as we increase plant populations up to 5 plants per foot of row. We don’t need to go higher. With lower plant populations, especially if you lean toward early plantings, you will likely experience more tomato spotted wilt. We need to avoid this disease if possible, and adequate plant stands are our buffer.

We need to control thrips – this insect can cause enough damage to decrease yields just from feeding. This insect also transmits significant amounts of tomato spotted wilt virus. If you go the least expensive route, which many of you do by using imidacloprid (Admire Pro or generic imidacloprid,) be ready with a timely postemergence spray of Hemi with nonionic surfactant. Yes, acephate still works in many fields, but performance has become marginal in some areas due to resistance. If you spray acephate and have resistance, you lose about 10 days of protection on top of the injury you had following your in-furrow application. It just takes time to realize the acephate failed. Be timely.

Finally, from an early-season standpoint, having an effective and I would say heavy-handed soil-applied herbicide program at planting and for the first six weeks or so is very important, no matter what the contract price is. Overlap your residuals. Be timely. It’s better to prevent weeds from emerging than chasing them with multiple postemergence applications.

That final phrase – be timely – cannot be overemphasized. With a less-than-ideal contract price, every input will be scrutinized. Most inputs need to stay in the production system. But the timelier we can be with our inputs, the more we gain from them. I only got us through the first part of the season with this column. I’ll add more details as the season progresses. You can get that information from our Extension peanut portal (https://peanut.ces.ncsu.edu/).

Here’s a quick Jack Bailey story. When I was a graduate student in Alan York’s program in the late 1980s, I was driving a new project truck on the Bear Swamp Road just before you get to Hertford. The road was gravel, and before I knew it the right side of the truck was in the ditch. As the ditch got deeper in the turn, the truck rolled over on its side. A few minutes later, Tommy Harrell showed up after a phone call from Stan Winslow (we had just finished a peanut trial down that way when Stan was an extension agent.) With his truck and nylon rope, Tommy pulled the truck over and then out of the ditch. That was a splendid example of someone lending a hand. Turns out I’m kin to Tommy – but through the Jordan side and not the Harrell side. But we are all kin if we go back far enough. Tommy passed away this winter. I would see him occasionally over the years. I always felt better about life when we finished our conversations. He was upbeat and a pillar of his community. In my memory, my first encounter with Tommy was on that gravel road.

Rumor is my Great Uncle Hugh (Harrell) ran and drank moonshine at night on that same road I had an issue with. He also dusted crops in the area. I’m sure he would have frowned at the way I took that curve, but I think a full tank of water and CO2-tanks for spraying plots were heavier than those precious jars of moonshine. We will just need to let that go. And, I survived having to break the news to York about his new project truck. We just need to own the things we are responsible for. Then we can move forward.