Outstanding in Your Field

A challenging 2026 growing season has left growers with plenty to think about heading into harvest and into 2027.

In this episode of Outstanding in Your Field, Pioneer Field Agronomist Troy Deutmeyer joins Crystal Williams and Carl Joern to talk through corn residue management and why what happens behind the combine can make a difference next spring.

Their conversation covers residue sizing and distribution, tillage and no-till systems, biological residue decomposition products, cover crops and the role of soil biology in breaking down high-yielding corn residue.

The team also discusses what growers are seeing during the 2026 harvest, including discolored soybeans following a hot, wet growing season, nutrient considerations when removing corn stalks, European corn borer pressure and an encouraging decline in corn rootworm populations across parts of the Midwest.

Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.

Wet conditions are putting a slow start on harvest 2026 across parts of the Midwest. With special guest and Southeast Indiana based agronomist Jason Geis joining the conversation, this episode of Outstanding in Your Field discusses what wet weather could mean for soybean harvest and yield potential, including what growers may see from later-planted and fuller-season soybeans.

The conversation also dives into Red Crown Rot, an emerging, soil-borne soybean disease being identified in more fields across the Midwest. Geis has been battling Red Crown Rot with growers since 2022 and discusses how they've learned to spot it. 

"The best thing you can do is make a plan," says Geis. "This disease is spreading. If you think if you have red crown rot, you're going to want to make a plan when those fields go back to beans. Get someone out there who knows what they are looking for. We can use some of the tools we've got in the toolbox today to help protect yield."

Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.

A few years later, as drought and dust storms devastated farms across the Midwest, Pioneer 307 gave farmers another reason to keep planting. In 1936, nearly 30% of Iowa’s corn acres failed, making the search for better-performing hybrids more important than ever.

Fast forward nearly 100 years, and the work continues. Pioneer is still breeding corn hybrids, still studying what makes plants perform, and still looking for ways to help farmers get more from every acre.

On this episode of Outstanding in Your Field, Bryan Schrader, Carl Joern and Crystal Williams sit down with Pioneer’s resident historian Lance Gibson to explore the story behind Copper Cross and the milestones that helped shape both Pioneer and modern agriculture.

Dig deeper into Pioneer’s history: ⁠https://www.corteva.com/products-and-services/seeds/pioneer100.html⁠

Learn more about Henry Wallace: ⁠https://www.farmprogress.com/names-in-the-news/how-henry-a-wallace-sowed-seeds-of-success⁠

Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.

As Carl explains to Pioneer Agronomists Mike Wardyn, Kevin Keller, and Kevin Kowalaski, the goal isn’t simply to spray on a predetermined calendar date. It’s about understanding disease development, the environment and the crop in front of you — and making an application when it has the best chance of protecting yield and delivering a return. 

Listen for a conversation about Pioneer’s Fungicide Timing Solution, disease thresholds, fungicide timing, hybrid selection, late-season plant health, and the role weather plays in disease development. 

The group also discusses what growers can learn from this year’s tar spot pressure, including how to scout earlier, document disease development, and make management decisions based on the specific hybrid, environment, and crop stage.

Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.

What does it take to develop the next generation of high-performing corn hybrids? In celebration of Pioneer's 100th anniversary, hosts Bryan Schrader, Crystal Williams and Carl Joern sit down with Geoff Graham, Vice President of Seed Product Development, for a behind-the-scenes look at the research, technology and people driving a century of innovation.

Geoff shares how advances in predictive breeding, genomics, drone technology, artificial intelligence and data analytics are accelerating product development while keeping growers at the center of every decision. From the evolution of local breeding programs to the future of gene editing, this conversation explores how Pioneer continues to deliver stronger genetics, greater consistency and increased yield potential for farmers.

Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.

Hosts Bryan Schrader and Carl Joern sit down with Dr. Lance Merrick and ask everything you ever wanted to know about corn breeding. 

The conversation also explores how AI is changing the way breeders tackle emerging challenges like tar spot, why Pioneer continues to invest heavily in research and development, and what these technological advances mean for the future of corn production.

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Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.

In this episode of Outstanding in Your Field, Pioneer agronomists Crystal Williams and Carl Joern break down the agronomic challenges many growers are facing as the 2026 growing season reaches its midpoint.

As warmer, more humid conditions settle across the Corn Belt, Crystal and Carl discuss increasing disease pressure, including tar spot, white mold, crown rot, Phytophthora, and other moisture-related diseases. They also share how Pioneer’s new fungicide timing tool helps growers optimize application timing based on weather, crop development, and disease risk.

The discussion covers how saturated soils impact corn and soybean growth, nitrogen availability, sulfur deficiencies, and when rescue fertilizer applications may make economic sense. They also explain why crop stage matters when evaluating flood damage and how planting date has influenced crop resilience this season.

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Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.

In this special crossover episode, Outstanding in Your Field host Carl Joern welcomes Kick'n Dirt co-host and Nebraska Product Agronomist Mike Wardyn for a boots-on-the-ground discussion about what farmers are seeing across corn country.

From drought-stressed dryland acres in Nebraska to flooded fields in Indiana and Illinois, this conversation covers the challenges, opportunities, and management decisions shaping this year's crop.

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If you enjoyed this crossover episode of Outstanding in Your Field and Kick'n Dirt, be sure to subscribe, follow, and leave a review wherever you get your podcasts. Share this episode with a fellow farmer, agronomist, or crop consultant, and stay connected for more timely agronomy insights, crop updates, and management discussions from across the Corn Belt.

Have a question you'd like us to cover on a future episode? Reach out to [email protected]!

Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.

What are agronomists seeing across the Corn Belt as June begins? In this episode of Outstanding in Your Field, hosts Bryan Schrader, Carl Jordan, and Crystal Williams discuss the wide range of field conditions shaping the 2026 growing season. 

Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.

In this episode of Outstanding in Your Field, Carl Joern, Brian Schrader, Crystal Williams, and Pioneer agronomists from across Illinois and Indiana share a boots-on-the-ground update on the 2026 growing season.

From early planting windows and rapid heat unit accumulation to frost damage, variable emergence, herbicide injury, and weed management concerns, this regional roundtable covers the biggest agronomic trends shaping the season so far. Hear firsthand observations from northern Illinois to southern Indiana on stand establishment, replant decisions, nitrogen and sulfur considerations, and what growers should prioritize over the next 30 days.

Despite a spring marked by weather extremes and uneven field conditions, one theme remains consistent: patience, adaptability, and confidence in the crop’s potential.

Outstanding in Your Field is the podcast created for farmers and powered by Pioneer Agronomy—bringing you trusted insights and proven solutions to fuel forward-thinking farming.

Hosted by agronomists Brian Schrader (eastern Indiana), Carl Joern (northwest Indiana/northeast Illinois), and Crystal Williams (northern Illinois), this show delivers timely, practical agronomic advice you can apply directly to your fields across the Eastern Corn Belt.