Seed Orientation Study

The Impact of Seed Orientation

The way that a seed is orientated, or positioned, in the furrow carries more weight than you might believe.

Corn kernels always germinate in the same way, with an embryo on one side of the seed. The embryo will imbibe water (aka soil moisture) and begin germinating. When the kernel is positioned tip down in the furrow, the coleoptile will start to germinate upward, moving closer and closer to emerging from the ground.

If, instead, the kernel is placed tip up, the coleoptile will begin growing downward. While the corn kernel will eventually realize this and make a u-turn to start growing upward instead, this causes the corn time and energy, ultimately leading to late emergence and yield loss.

Corn Kernel Seed Orientation Study Results

How much yield can really be gained with proper seed orientation in the furrow? Let's take a look at the science.

According to the seed orientation study we've performed over the last 7 years at the PTI farm, where we planted our corn kernels tip down, we received 99% 12-hour emergence.

As we know, late emergence times ultimately impact yields. By how much? Corn plants emerging just 12 hours late (24hrs) suffer yield losses of -13.5% Bu/A, and -29.2% Bu/A at the 36-hour timeframe.

Seed orientation is one of several factors that can influence the emergence times of your crops. Emergence flagging can provide you with the data to understand your average emergence times and how much yield you're really giving up.

Study Details 

Study data collected 2018-2024 at the PTI Farm in Pontiac, IL.