We will have a fair amount of corn tasseling shortly after the weekend – so fungicide application season is about here.
In talking with farmers and retailers the last week or so, based on all the rainfall and wet soils this is shaping up to be a big year for fungicide applications, so just a few thoughts for guys “on the fence” and trying to decide whether to spray or not.
One thing we have learned from outbreaks of sudden death syndrome (SDS) in years past is that this disease likes it wet. Last year we wrote about the risk of SDS increasing with the early season rain. But at the end of the article we threw in one caveat – soybeans were planted very late in the season, which reduced the risk of SDS developing. And after we published the article, the rains essentially stopped. Fast forward to the end of the 2013 season -- we still had some SDS in parts of Iowa in 2013, but it was not as nearly as bad as it could have been.
Northern corn leaf blight (NCLB) has been reported in numerous fields in Iowa. Most of the reports have come from central and western Iowa, but since the pathogen that causes this disease is spread by wind and rain, the disease could be more widespread.
We continue to receive several questions about Northern corn leaf blight, Goss’s wilt and fungicides. Here is some additional information.
Parts of rural Iowa are abuzz about fungicide use to manage some emerging diseases, and we have received several questions about the basics of fungicides. A quick reminder, APS PRESS recently published a book geared towards farmers and agronomists on the basics of fungicides.
