In Eastern Canada, the saying is “Corn is King.” Although the migration of corn westward isn’t as brisk as in soybeans, indications still point to continued growth for corn acres. Manitoba seeded 410,000 acres of corn for grain in 2017, an increase of 18.8 per cent, and a record for grain corn seeding in the province.

For 2018, eight seed and trait companies will introduce more than 20 new hybrids, so get ready to do your homework. Seed selection is among the most critical decisions for corn growers anywhere.

(Legend – CHU: crop heat units; RM: relative maturity; BMR: brown mid-rib; NDFd: neutral detergent fibre digestibility)

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Croplan

1756VT2P/RIB (77 day/2250 CHU): This is an early introduction that features a fixed ear type suited for medium- to high-stand populations in the 2250-CHU regions. It flowers in the mid-range of the maturity set enabling good-quality grain, and is a medium-height plant with very good stalk strength and good stay-green.

2587VT2P/RIB (85 day/2625 CHU): This hybrid performs consistently across varying soil types in the 2625 CHU area, with plant health that provides for late-season intactness. The hybrid has excellent drydown characteristics (open husk) and an 85 RM. This hybrid also has very good drought tolerance.

Dekalb/Monsanto

DKC26-40RIB (2150 CHU): This VT Double PRO RIB Complete hybrid has a strong disease package and excellent test weight. Its fast drydown helps put this hybrid on the early side of its relative maturity. It has also demonstrated excellent emergence and late-season appearance.

Dow Seeds

DS79C56 (2300 CHU, 79 RM): The earliest of the new Enlist weed control system hybrids, this is a high-yielding, early-flowering hybrid featuring the new PowerCore trait for broad-spectrum above-ground insect control. It is a flex ear type with deep kernels and good test weight. Solid agronomics include strong stalks and good late-season plant integrity.

TMF81H46 (400 CHU, 81 RM): This new silage-specific hybrid is part of the Enlist weed control system and includes the PowerCore trait. Strong tonnage can be expected from this early hybrid along with excellent NDFd and starch scores. It is well adapted to various soil types and environments, and boasts a solid agronomic package for stalks and roots.

DS81R65 (2400 CHU, 81 RM): This hybrid featuring the PowerCore trait offers consistent-sized ears down the row with good tip fill, fast grain drydown and good grain quality. Solid agronomics include good drought tolerance and strong stalks and roots. Excellent emergence and early vigour make this hybrid well adapted to early planting.

DS83T15 (2500 CHU, 83 RM): This new hybrid features the PowerCore trait for broad-spectrum above-ground insect pest control and it has very high-yield potential in productive environments. It offers strong emergence and vigour in cool, wet soils and is well adapted for early planting. Solid agronomics include excellent stay-green, and late-season plant intactness and good stalk strength.

BMR90B17 (2600 CHU, 90 RM): Dow Seeds’ earliest BMR hybrid features a new line of BMR genetics with Smart­Stax and Enlist traits. It provides excellent NDFd and delivers very high-quality corn silage. It produces very good forage yields for its maturity, has a solid agronomic package and adapts well to variable plant densities.

BMR90B94 (2600 CHU, 90 RM): This new BMR hybrid has excellent standability and good stress tolerance. Its solid plant agronomics will support high plant densities and narrow row widths. It moves north well.

DuPont Pioneer

Grain Corn

P7227R (2125 CHU): This hybrid is early maturing with excellent grain and silage corn yield potential plus an exceptional drought resistance score. It has average stalk strength, root strength and grain test weight scores along with an average Goss’s wilt resistance rating.

P7527AM (2150 CHU: A new early-maturing corn product with Optimum AcreMax technology, this hybrid delivers an integrated refuge for above-ground insect control. Excellent yield potential and drought tolerance along with an average Goss’s wilt resistance rating. It also provides average stalk strength, root strength and grain test weight scores.

Silage Corn (Recommended for Manitoba and Southern Alberta)

P8700AM (2600 CHU): This product with Optimum AcreMax technology, delivers integrated refuge for above-ground insect control. For Western Can­ada, it is a high-silage yield corn with very good northern blight tolerance and excellent drought resistance. It also has excellent whole plant digestibility scores when feeding to your animals.

Elite Seeds

E44H12 R (2100 CHU): This Genuity VT Double Pro RIB Complete is an early hybrid with good seedling vigour. Its early flowering and short relative maturity make it an excellent option for short-season regions. It also has an excellent yield and test weight.

E52V97 R (2450 CHU): This is the Roundup Ready version of E52V92 R. This medium-tall corn has very good stalk and root strength and adapts well to high population, offering a good yield response in all environments. Its test weight is excellent.

E55T37 R (2600 CHU): This is the Roundup Ready version of E55T32 R. This hybrid has good seedling vigour as well as great stay-green in the fall, which makes it a good candidate for either silage or grain corn. It has a fast drydown and the yield potential is high in high-yielding regions.

Horizon Seeds

HZ 1451/HZ 1452 (2200 CHU, 74 RM): This exciting, very early-flowering hybrid, is a short-stature hybrid that is characterized by its excellent test weight and exceptionally nice grain. HZ 1451 is offered with the new trait platform Agrisure 3120 E-Z Refuge, which offers European corn borer insect protection only and HZ 1452 is offered with the glyphosate-tolerant Agrisure GT trait.

HZ 1686 (2250 CHU, 76RM): This excellent hybrid offers a high yield to moisture ratio. It gives high yield with dry grain, reducing drying costs in the fall with very good in-season plant health and excellent fall stalk strength allowing for an easy harvest.

HZ 1840 (2350 CHU, 78 RM): This new conventional hybrid with huge, girthy ears and great kernel depth offers great characteristics as a potential grain or silage hybrid.

Maizex Seeds

Silage corn

MS 6902R (1950 CHU, 69 RM): This Roundup Ready Corn 2 hybrid with a strong combination of maturity and yield makes this a leading performer for early silage. It has large, girthy ears with soft kernel texture for increased starch availability. A large, robust plant with wide leaves maximizes tonnage and white cobs increase feed palatability.

MS 7420R (2300 CHU, 74 RM): This aggressive Roundup Ready Corn 2 hybrid has strong seedling vigour and large, robust plants. Large ears have kernels with soft texture to increase digestibility. White cobs increase feed palatability.

MS 8088R (2400 CHU, 80 RM): This flexible hybrid with the Agricure GT trait has strong stalks that allow for flexible harvest. Large ears increase starch quantity while its tall, robust plant increases tonnage. Performance excels in low- and high-yield environments.

Pride Seeds

A4477HM (2300 CHU): This new introductory conventional hybrid for silage and high-moisture corn usage, from a unique genetic product family, features slow grain-drying rate that preserves reliable and consistent feed quality at ideal moisture content. Ears are very girthy, exceptionally consistent, producing packed kernels on a white cob. This hybrid has very good Goss’s wilt tolerance, outstanding health, standability and disease resistance.

This article was originally published in the September 2017 issue of the Corn Guide.