The High-Yield Management Difference with Purdue University’s Shaun Casteel

The High-Yield Management Difference with Purdue University’s Shaun Casteel

From A Penney For Your Thoughts by Sean Blomgren & Andrew Penney

December 2, 2025 · 56 min · Season 4 · Episode 15

About this episode

Sean and Andrew discuss high-yield soybean management with expert Shaun Casteel at Purdue University.

Sean and Andrew are back at Purdue University with soybean expert Shaun Casteel, talking about what makes the difference between traditional and high-yield soybean management, and how you can take your crop to the next level. The crew discusses: ✅ Planting soybeans before corn ✅ The maturity-moisture connection ✅ The importance of fungicide seed treatment in timely planting ✅ Soybean planting depths and populations ✅ When variable rate planting makes sense for soybeans ✅ The role of sulfur in soybean production ✅ The impact of narrow rows on yield ✅ Limiting factors in high-yield soybean management Meet the Guest: 🌱 Dr. Shaun Casteel was born and raised on the family farm in east-central Illinois. He earned his B.S. in Crop Sciences at the University of Illinois in 2001 while interning with many ag companies. In 2004, Shaun earned his M.S. in Crop Science at NC State University, working in cotton physiology, management, and Extension. Then, he was the agronomist for NC Department of Agriculture for the following two years. Shaun earned his Ph.D. in Soil Science (Nutrient Management) in 2009 at NC State University to round out his education as an agronomist. Shaun joined the…

People in this episode

Hosts: Sean Blomgren, Andrew Penney

Guest: Shaun Casteel

Topics covered

  • high-yield soybean management
  • crop science
  • agronomy
  • planting techniques
  • soybean production
  • agricultural research

Keywords

  • soybeans
  • crop management
  • fungicide seed treatment
  • planting depths
  • variable rate planting
  • sulfur in production
  • narrow rows
  • yield factors

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Purdue University, University of Illinois, NC State University, NC Department of Agriculture

More episodes of A Penney For Your Thoughts

Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the A Penney For Your Thoughts podcast page.