I have had several conversations with members of the agricultural community regarding seed quality resulting from issues derived from delayed harvest and persistent wet conditions encountered in many parts of Illinois in 2018. For more information on what seed producers and soybean farmers should keep in mind going into this season, see my new article published on the Illinois Field Crop Disease blog, found by clicking here.…
Authors: Nick Seiter and Joe Spencer
Producers across east-central Illinois have enjoyed low western corn rootworm pressure for several years, due to a combination of saturating rains during rootworm egg hatch and widespread use of Bt corn hybrids. Following a low point in the rootworm population in 2015, statewide monitoring of corn and soybean fields has documented a slow western corn rootworm population rebound in some areas. Recent low corn pest abundance (combined with lower commodity prices) provides an opportunity to become reacquainted with rootworm monitoring and non-Bt options for their management.…
The development of resistance to Bt Cry toxins by the western corn rootworm is a growing concern, highlighted by the recent confirmation of field-evolved resistance to Cry34/35Ab1 in Iowa (https://www.agriculture.com/crops/corn/why-managing-corn-rootworm-just-became-more-complicated). Across the Corn Belt there are western corn rootworm populations with resistance to multiple Bt Cry toxins expressed in Bt corn. In Illinois, Bt resistance can be found in western corn rootworms from both continuous and first-year cornfields; rotation-resistant populations are vulnerable to Bt resistance.…
The following is posted on behalf of Dr. Nathan Kleczewski, Field Crops Pathologist for Growmark. This content is from the Field Crop Disease Hub webpage Dr. Kleczewski curated.
Kelly Estes, Nicholas Seiter, and I will be compiling an annual report detailing the applied research trials and data that are available to share with the public. These reports will be permanently housed on this website along with new factsheets and reports in Spring, 2019.
Data included in these unbiased research trials are for informational purposes only.…
The 2018 report on applied pest and pathogen research in Illinois is now available. This guide provides information on pest and disease management research updates. It is currently located at the Field Crop Disease webpage.
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The United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) renewed the labels of three dicamba-containing products used in dicamba-resistant soybean varieties on October 31, 2018. These renewed labels also contain new restrictions and requirements that did not appear on the original labels. Each application must completely satisfy all label requirements and restrictions, but the following three new requirements might necessitate additional forethought and planning.
Additional in-field buffers
Fields that exist in counties that might harbor endangered terrestrial dicot plant species must have an in-field,…
Many soybean growers have had problems with lodging at harvest this year. The primary culprit for this (as for many of our woes this fall) was the extended period of unfavorable weather that we have suffered. However, in parts of southern Illinois damage by the dectes stem borer contributed to this problem.
The adult dectes stem borer (Figure 1) is a “long-horned” beetle that can often be found in soybean and on other plants. The adult female chews a hole into the surface of the plant (usually at the petiole),…
The following is posted on behalf of Dr. Nathan Kleczewski, Field Crops Pathologist for Growmark. This content is from the Field Crop Disease Hub webpage Dr. Kleczewski curated.
Soybean Cyst Nematode is an extremely important, yield-limiting pathogen of soybeans in Illinois, reducing yields an average of 1-3% across the state. As I have written in earlier posts, sampling your fields every 3-5 years to assess SCN levels and HG types is the first step in managing this issue. …
The extension weed science programs at The Ohio State University, Purdue University, and the University of Illinois recently collaborated to revise suggestions and precautions for use of dicamba in dicamba-resistant soybean. The United States Environmental Protection Agency renewed labels of Xtendimax, Engenia, and FeXapan last October, and this updated extension weed science publication offers additional suggestions to help further reduce off-target dicamba movement.
Dicamba Precautions_2018 Update…
The following is posted on behalf of Dr. Nathan Kleczewski, Field Crops Pathologist for Growmark. This content is from the Field Crop Disease Hub webpage Dr. Kleczewski curated.
Charcoal rot is a disease that we see in years where soybeans are stressed for a significant portion of the season due to drought. If you look at older references and publications in the field of soybean pathology, you will see that many show images of microsclerotia,…