Freeze and Chilling Injury in Corn

First off, let’s start with corn. For those of you with emerged corn, remember that the growing point (apical meristem) right now is likely around three quarters of an inch underground in corn and won’t be above ground until around V5-V6. Therefore, any damage to above ground leaves that shows up in the days following injury is unlikely to kill the plant, but may cause superficial damage to young leaves. In this situation, wait 3 to 5 days to evaluate the regrowth of new tissue from the whorl. Injury directly following a frost can appear very severe the day or two days following a frost, but as long as the growing point is unharmed the crop should recover. You can slit open the stems to observe the growing point. A healthy growing point should be yellow/white in color, not brown.

What about corn that hasn’t emerged yet? This depends on when the field was planted. In general, the coleoptile is susceptible to freezing temperature but we would likely need to have temperatures in the mid or lower 20’s for several hours to cause damage so that’s not likely to be a concern with this cold snap. However, when we add the planting timing into the mix, things can change. For fields that were planted just before the cold snap there may be an increased risk for imbibitional chilling due to moisture and soil temperature fluctuations.

As corn seeds take up water the cell membrane stretches and cells expand. When a damaged cell membrane rehydrates, it may not return to its normal shape and size; creating “leaky” cells. This, in turn, is likely to reduce growth rate and interfere with growth of the emerging seedling. Debate exists about what specific temperature and timing causes imbibitional chilling. However, corn plants that imbibe cold water (in the low 40s) in the first 48 hours after planting undoubtedly are affected.

Freeze and Chilling Injury in Soybeans

Now let’s switch to soybeans. Similar to corn, temperatures would have to get very low to damage seedlings still underground that had germinated. If plants have emerged, there are several things going in the soybeans’ favor to avoid damage. First off, our warmer soil temps heading into this cold spell likely helped raise the air temperatures right at the soil surface, which should reduce damage. Secondly, the cotyledons are actually somewhat frost tolerant since they are 95% water and fairly thick, so low temperatures are needed for more time to cause damage. However, soybeans that are just emerging with the hypocotyl hook exposed at or just above ground level, can be the most at risk for damage. The hypocotyl hook is the area of the stem below the soybean cotyledon. Anything that impacts it will result in seedling death. Watch for plants that have soft, mushy, or pinched hypocotyls.

Soybeans that had been planted just before the cold snap are also susceptible to possible damage during germination. Germination for soybeans consists of a quick uptake of water (imbibitional phase), typically less than 24 hours, followed by a slower uptake of water known as the osmotic phase. Chilling during the imbibitional phase can cause severe problems because water is needed to rehydrate the cotyledons and embryo to the point that cell membranes become functional. Cold temperatures interfere with proper hydration of those membranes. The imbibitional phase may complete without chilling injury in cooler soils (45°F) if the soil is moist but not saturated and no cold rains/cold snaps occur within 24 hours.