Agrisure NK8840 EZ Refuge Corn (NK8840): Yield, Maturity and Characteristics
Agrisure NK8840 EZ Refuge corn is a yellow GM hybrid corn variety, also sold or known as NK8840 or NK8840 BGT. It was registered with the National Seed Industry Council in 2018 as NSIC 2018 GMCn 49. Syngenta bred it. It takes 106 to 109 days from planting to the harvest of dry grain, with 8.16 tonnes per hectare on average in the trials.
The average and top yields in tonnes per hectare come from the trials each variety went through to be registered with the NSIC, and from what the seed companies say about their own seed.
What farmers harvest today can be different. Newer harvest records, the season, the place, the soil, the water and the care all move these numbers over time.
So use them to compare varieties, not as a promise for your field. Ask your seller or your agriculturist how the variety did on farms near you in the last few seasons.
If you came here looking for NK8840 or NK8840 BGT, this is the same corn. Its seller and farm sources add notes, listed at the end. Compare it with the others in our corn variety finder, or see every crop variety we list. For the crop itself, read our guide: Pagtatanim ng mais, step by step.
- Days to harvest: 106 to 109 days from planting to the harvest of dry grain.
- Yield: 8.16 tonnes per hectare on average in the trials.
- Plant height: about 220.6 cm.
- Recommended for: Luzon and Mindanao.
- Type: Yellow GM hybrid.
Key facts about Agrisure NK8840 EZ Refuge corn
| Trait | What the record shows |
|---|---|
| Registration | NSIC 2018 GMCn 49 |
| Year approved | 2018 |
| Breeder or owner | Syngenta |
| Also known as | NK8840, NK8840 BGT, NK8840BtGT, NK8840 E Z Refuge |
| Type | Yellow GM hybrid |
| Days to harvest | 106 to 109 days |
| Average yield | 8.16 t/ha |
| Plant height | 220.6 cm |
| Recommended area | Luzon and Mindanao |
| Ear length (cm) | 17.1 |
| Shelling recovery (percent) | 74.6 |
| Lodging resistance | Resistant |
How long does it take, and how much does it yield?
Agrisure NK8840 EZ Refuge corn takes 106 to 109 days from planting to the harvest of dry grain. That is about the average of the 89 yellow GM hybrid corn varieties with a day count, 105.4 days. A shorter crop frees the field sooner and dodges more of the weather, while a longer one often fills more.
Its average yield of 8.16 t/ha matches the average of its group, 8.13. One tonne of shelled corn fills about 20 sacks of 50 kilograms. Trial yields come from well managed plots, so your own will depend on water, fertilizer, pests and timing. Its seller gives 115 to 120 days after planting.
Once you know the day count, anee.io dates every task from each lot's own planting day, with the growth stages and weather beside it.
Is it resistant to pests and diseases?
| Pest or disease | Rating | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Corn borer | Resistant | Held up well |
| Rust | Resistant | Held up well |
| Stalk rot | Resistant | Held up well |
| Corn earworm | Resistant | Held up well |
It showed no weak spot in the ratings on record. Still, a resistant variety can break down when a new strain or pest population comes, so keep scouting. Read up on Asian corn borer, Corn rust, Corn stalk rot, Corn earworm.
The pests and diseases that hit corn fields most often: Asian corn borer, banded leaf and sheath blight, Corn downy mildew, Corn ear rot, Corn planthopper. Our pest finder and disease finder help you name what you see.
What the grain is like
Its ears grew about 17.1 cm long in the trials. The shelling recovery was 74.6 percent, the share of the ear weight that comes off as grain. A higher share means more grain from every sack of ears. Against lodging it rated resistant, so it stood up well when wind and rain pushed the plants.
What its seller and farm sources say
- Yield: Potential 12 t/ha.
- Traits in the seed: BGT stack Bt11 x TC1507 x GA21: Bt proteins against Asian corn borer and other caterpillars, plus glyphosate tolerance (GA21). Sold as EZ Refuge: the brochures say 5 percent refuge seed is already blended in the bag.
- Season: Wet and dry season.
- Where: Upper vega of Cagayan Valley, Ilocos Region and Central Luzon.
- Stand: 71,428 plants per ha, furrows 70 cm, hills 20 cm.
- Big, heavy jumbo ears (company).
- Better drought tolerance (company).
- Easy to dehusk and harvest.
Why farmers know it: on Syngenta's current corn list, its brochure lists top Masaganang Ani awards at the Cagayan Valley Research Center in 2017 (12.82 t/ha) and 2019 (12.15 t/ha) and the 2020 Cordillera regional derby (9.01 t/ha), and says the hybrid has been sold for 18 years. These are the seller's own figures, from its own trials. So plant a small area first, and compare it with your usual corn on the same ground.
Where and when to plant Agrisure NK8840 EZ Refuge corn
It is recommended for Luzon and Mindanao. Start with the color your buyer pays for: yellow corn goes to feed mills, while white and glutinous corn go to the table. Next, pick between a hybrid, which yields more but needs new seed every season, and an open pollinated variety, whose seed you can save. Then match the island group in its recommendation, because trials in Luzon and Mindanao give different winners. Before planting, get the field ready with our guide: Land preparation for corn.
Before you buy seed
- Buy sealed packs or tagged sacks from an accredited dealer, and check the packing date and germination rate.
- Ask your municipal agriculturist or nearby farmers how it did in your area last season.
- Try it on a small area first, beside the variety you usually plant, before you switch the whole farm.
- Write down the planting day, inputs and harvest, so you can compare varieties on your own ground. anee.io keeps these records for you.
Set the planting day of each lot and anee.io dates every task to harvest, with the weather beside it. Free on the Libre plan.
Start freeCorn varieties like this one
These are the closest matches among the corn varieties we list. So if seed of this one is hard to find, compare these first.
- Bio Corn Hi Fly: about 108 days, 7.72 t/ha, 2023
- P3530R: 106 to 109 days, 8.56 t/ha, 2019
- P3530YHR: 106 to 109 days, 8 t/ha, 2019
- NK 306BtGt: 105 to 110 days, 8.65 t/ha, 2018
Is NK8840 the same as Agrisure NK8840 EZ Refuge?
How long does it take to harvest?
What is its yield?
Can I save its seed?
Where does it grow best?
Where can I buy seed of Agrisure NK8840 EZ Refuge?
See how Agrisure NK8840 EZ Refuge will do on your farm
With Libre + Anee, see its full record: how it yields, its strengths and weaknesses against pests, diseases and the weather, and whether it fits your farm, your season and your soil.
The account is free, no credit card.
