After a dry beginning to the season, wheat growers might be trying to decide how to proceed with their nitrogen fertility program. If not irrigated, most wheat planted in the Sacramento Valley during November will likely have been stunted by the relatively dry conditions during the second half of November and throughout December (see Fig. 1, below). Some of the crops out there may need to be replanted entirely. If you're trying to work out how your stand is doing, consider some population sampling.

To get a rough estimate of your field's population, take several plant counts from random locations in the field. Lay a yard stick parallel to a row and count how many plants are still present in that row. Do this several times...