These 3 shots were all taken on Sunday June 21 the longest day of the year to give you a better conception of soil coverage and sunlight interception by different row width corn.The top photo depicts 38inch row corn.

This middle shot is of 22 inch row corn.As you can see narrower row corn closes over its canopy sooner aiding in weed suppression.

This bottom shot is 30 inch row corn.Research has shown roughly a 3-4% yield increase for 30 inch row corn over 38 inch row corn.However Research data for 22 inch row corn over 30 inch row corn is less predictive.Research at times would support an increase for narrow rows in more northern latitudes of the corn belt and in the 3000 HU and lower areas of Ontario.Best response would be anticipated with shorter statured early flowering hybrids. Late flowering, tall statured full season hybrids in the 3200 HU zone and later have generally not shown any positive response to narrow row corn production.

Where research has supported a yield advantage to narrow row corn production it would require a minimum of 500 acres of corn to justify the added expense of converting over.