The Bulletin Archives - Page 66 of 72

Palmer amaranth: what should you do if you find it in your fields?

August 6, 2013
Aaron Hager

Recently, we have identified populations of Palmer amaranth in several Illinois counties. The density of many populations is relatively low, and often these plants occur only in small patches. However, a few scattered plants this year can lead to severe infestations within only a few years.
We continue to accept tissue samples from suspected Palmer amaranth plants and use tools of molecular biology to identify whether the sample is Palmer amaranth or another species of Amaranthus. …

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Check Corn Pollination

August 2, 2013
Emerson Nafziger

We are starting to get reports that corn pollination might not have been as successful as expected in parts of Illinois. While the weather was generally favorable during the peak period of pollination, it was warm during the third week of July, and soil water may have been limiting during this period in some fields. Thus we would expect to see this in the areas with low rainfall in July.
This is not the lack of silking that we saw in many areas under the drought of 2012.…

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Assessing the risk of white mold (Sclerotinia stem rot) of soybean in 2013

July 22, 2013
Aaron Hager

White mold of soybean (a.k.a. Sclerotinia stem rot), caused by the fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, is a disease that can occur in the northern half of the state in cool, wet years. The most recent white mold epidemic in Illinois occurred during the 2009 season, where several fields in the northern half of the state were affected.
The white mold fungus overwinters in the soil as, small, black, and dense structures known as sclerotia. …

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Corn and Soybean Crops at Mid-Season

July 20, 2013
Emerson Nafziger

The third week of July brought above-normal temperatures to much of Illinois. This is expected to be temporary, with temperatures the fourth week expected to return to normal. Because soils in most areas had enough water to carry the crop through the week, we don’t think the high daytime temperatures were much cause for concern.
By July 14, 21 percent of the Illinois corn crop was pollinating. This included most fields planted before May 10 to 15.…

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Brownstown Agronomy Research Center Field Day – July 25

July 15, 2013
Aaron Hager

The 2013 Brownstown Agronomy Research Center Field Day, presented by the University Of Illinois Department Of Crop Sciences, will be held on Thursday, July 25. Extension researchers and specialists will address issues pertinent to the current growing season. Tours will start at 8 a.m., with the second and third groups leaving the headquarters around 8:20 a.m. and 8:40 a.m. The tours will last about two and a half hours and will be followed by lunch provided by U of I Extension.…

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Corn Rootworm Larval Injury and Adult Emergence Lagging this Season

July 11, 2013
Michael Gray

Although western corn rootworm adult emergence is underway across many central Illinois counties, a quick poll of participants at the DeKalb Research and Education Center field day near Shabbona, Illinois on July 10 revealed that participants have not observed any beetles moving about their cornfields. Joe Spencer, an entomologist with the Illinois Natural History Survey, observed larvae continuing their root feeding activity in his research plots north of Urbana on July 9. Based upon these observations,…

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2013 Field Day July 16 at Orr Ag Center, Perry

July 9, 2013
Emerson Nafziger

The 2013 Orr Center Field Day presented by the Department of Crop Sciences at the University of Illinois will be held on Tuesday, July 16 at the Orr Center, which is located on Route 104 four miles west of the junction of Illinois Routes 104 and 107.
Tours will start at 9:00 AM, with the second and third groups leaving the headquarters at about 9:20 and 9:40. The tour will take about two hours, and will be followed by lunch provided by UI Extension.…

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Controlling Large Horseweed and Waterhemp in Soybean

July 3, 2013
Aaron Hager

The volume of inquiries about how to control large (taller than 12 inches) horseweed (a.k.a. marestail) and waterhemp in soybean has remained consistent over the past 10 days. The answer can be summarized as follows: there are NO postemergence herbicides that will consistently control these very large weeds in soybean, especially if these weeds are resistant to glyphosate.
Glyphosate-resistant waterhemp can be controlled by foliar-applied PPO inhibitors (such as lactofen (Cobra), fomesafen (Flexstar) or acifluorfen (Ultra Blazer)) in conventional or glyphosate-resistant soybean varieties,…

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Western Corn Rootworm Adult Emergence has Begun

July 2, 2013
Michael Gray

Western corn rootworm adult emergence is underway across east central Illinois. On July 1, Nick Tinsley, Research Specialist in the Department of Crop Sciences, observed his first adult male western corn rootworm of the growing season just south of Urbana within a University of Illinois research plot. Later that day, Joe Spencer, Associate Research Professor, Illinois Natural History Survey, observed five western corn rootworm adults after about 20 minutes of searching in his research plots north of Urbana.…

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Count Down to the Northwestern Agricultural Research Center Field Day

July 2, 2013
Aaron Hager

Preparations are underway for the 32nd Annual University of Illinois’ Northwestern Agricultural Research Center Field Day. The program will begin at 8 am on Wednesday, July 17th.
Buses will carry members of the public to different stops in the research center where specialists from the University of Illinois’ Department of Crop Sciences or Extension personnel will present their most current crop and pest management research and recommendations.

Topics and speakers include:
Identification and management of Goss’s wilt of corn –…

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