Field Crops

Information on:

Soybeans
Winter Barley
Acidifying your Soil
Waxy Wheat
Fertility
Corn

Why the interest in soybeans?

Soybeans appear to be as profitable as wheat and corn when considering a 5-cent pound tax credit which is (at a 55 bu/a yield that is $165/acre) if grown in Oregon and processed to biodiesel in Oregon.

Soybeans on a farmer's field near Vale, OR. 2009.

To learn more about the tax credit, follow this link.

Where would I sell soybeans so they would end up getting the tax credit? One example is Willamette Biomass Processors.

What kind of yield can I expect? We don't have a county-wide estimate of what farmers will get. All we have is experimental data from the Malheur Experiment Station. Experimental yields have averaged 63 bushels per acre with the best varieties receiving 67 bushels per acre. Reduce these yields since whole fields will average less. Other advantages of soybeans include:

Soybeans are easy to grow and will probably require no new machinery.
Soybeans meal is currently imported from the midwest for dairies, etc.
Soybeans require no nitrogen fertilization which can help buffer your farm from high fertilizer prices.
Soybeans can help us meet the renewable fuel standard.
Low input costs - soybeans can handle stress fairly well in the vegetative stage.
Soybeans require less water than either corn or alfalfa to grow.
Soybeans have a large market so addition of more acres will not saturate market.
Soybeans produce a large supply of protein which would be useful in many feeding situations that occur locally.
Soybeans have a lot of herbicides to help control weeds even yellow nutsedge.
Soybeans can be harvested for grain, hay or silage.

Steve Norberg, Field Crops and Watershed Management, has prepared a Soybeans Data Sheet for you to figure estimated costs of growing soybeans. If you would like further information, please contact Steve at 541-881-1417.