Some Flooded Soybeans Survived

by Don Molino

St. Landry Parish soybean farmer Charles Cannatella says he had some four hundred acres of his 2016 bean crop go under water from the flooding back in August.

"We got anywhere from an inch of water underneath the plants to over the top of the soybeans," says Cannatella. "Probably out of the 400 acres, we had about 75 or so acres that were under water, completely over the top of them for about 16 days until the water completely drained out of the field."

"I guess we had our share, about like everybody else," said Cannatella. "We were fortunate because there were some real early beans. And in fact, when the water went off, we (applied Gramoxone) and then harvested them. That's how close to the end they were. But the 75 or so acres that were totally under water, there was just nothing there."

"But the plants that still had green sticking out of the top made anywhere from 15 to 50 (bushels per acre) just depending on how deep the water was in that field. The plants that had six inches of water underneath were pretty and green when the water left," Canatella concluded.

(This report a service of the Louisiana Soybean and Grain Research and Promotion Board)