Syngenta Thrive - 2Q/2013 - 22

corn and saw a 17-bushel yield increase where we applied
Quadris® fungicide at V5 followed by Quilt Xcel at tassel.”
Bill Haskins of North Iowa Cooperative in Clear Lake also
saw yield improvements and other benefits in his customers’
corn after they made similar fungicide applications.
“In 2012, it was important that we use anything we could
to help keep plants alive until we could catch a rain,” he
says. “We saw yield increases from Quadris and Quilt Xcel
as well as stronger stalks and greener, healthier plants.”
These benefits partially stem from the ability of Quilt Xcel
to help corn, soybean and wheat plants utilize water more
efficiently by reducing their transpiration or water-loss rate.
(See “Stress Relief” on page 21 for additional benefits.)
“This doesn’t mean you can grow crops in the desert.
Plants still need water to survive and grow,” says Tedford.
“What this does mean is that when water is limited and
plants are stressed, a fungicide like Quilt Xcel can help
them reach their full yield potential.”
The Proof Is in the Trials
Results from various field trials and university irrigation studies
conducted over the past few years consistently prove the
yield benefits of using Quilt Xcel under dry conditions. In a
2010 trial conducted at the University of Nebraska, scientists
evaluated the fungicide for potential yield benefits under
different moisture conditions. In this trial, corn either received
full irrigation to simulate no moisture stress throughout the
season or were 60 percent irrigated. A portion of the corn
in both irrigation regimes received treatments of Quilt Xcel,
while the other portion received no fungicide treatments. Not
surprisingly, yield was highest in the fully irrigated plots, with
the fungicide improving yield by 8 bushels per acre over

untreated corn that received the same amount of water.
More impressively, Quilt Xcel increased yields by
15 bushels per acre in the 60 percent irrigated plots.
“It’s also worth noting that yield from the 60 percent
irrigated plots treated with Quilt Xcel (238 bushels per acre)
was almost equal to yield from the fully irrigated untreated
plot (242 bushels per acre),” Tedford says. In other words,
the plots treated with the fungicide achieved nearly the
same level of yield with 40 percent less water.
A 2011 sprinkler irrigation study at Kansas State
University showed similar results. Untreated corn that was
fully irrigated produced the same yield (214 bushels per
acre) as corn that was treated with Quilt Xcel at both the
early V4 to V8 and R1 growth stages with only 60 percent
of the full irrigation. In contrast, the untreated corn at 60
percent irrigation yielded 26 fewer bushels per acre (188
bushels per acre). At a $6-per-bushel market price, the yield
drag shown in these untreated plots could reduce the
amount of money growers would receive for their corn by
almost $160 per acre. That’s about $50,000 less for every
300 acres of corn grown.
On-Farm Results
On-farm trials conducted in drought-stricken areas during
the 2012 season also showed the positive impact fungicide
treatments can have on yields. A number of the trials
indicated yield boosts significantly higher than the averages
Syngenta promotes for Quilt Xcel. These averages are 6 to 8
bushels per acre in corn when applied at the early V4 to V8
timing, 15 bushels per acre in corn when applied around R1,
and 4 to 8 bushels per acre in soybeans. Trials during severe
drought conditions in both Sioux County, Iowa, and Trenton,
Ky., showed that corn
treated early with Quilt Xcel
out-yielded untreated corn
by roughly 31 bushels per
acre. Similarly, in a soybean
trial under drought conditions in Findlay, Ohio,
soybeans treated with the
fungicide out-yielded
untreated soybeans by 11.6
bushels per acre.
“These are the same
kind of results we saw over
and over again in the fields
we walked during the 2012
season,” Tedford says. “No
one can deny that some
growers paid a heavy toll in
yield because of last year’s
*Source: Kansas State University 2011
drought. However, the

Yield Benefit From Quilt Xcel at Different Irrigation Regimes*

20 · thrive · 2Q/13

PHOTO: (PAGES 18–19) THOMAS STRAND; CHART (PAGE 18) VIC KULIHIN. CHARTS: (THESE PAGES) VIC KULIHIN.

Syngenta Thrive - 2Q/2013

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