107 articles tagged "Plant Diseases".

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Red crown rot of soybean, caused by Calonectria Ilicicola, continues to be a concern in Indiana. We have identified our first symptoms in 2026 in a field that has had a previous history with soybeans at beginning pod (R3) growth stage. There weren’t any foliar symptoms, but when we pulled back the canopy we could see the red discoloration at the crown/soil line (Figure 1 B). Figure 2 show the map of Indiana counties where red crown rot has been confirmed in previous years. As we move through the rest of the growing season, we are actively surveying fields to better understand the distribution and prevalence of red crown rot across Indiana. Grower participation is critical to this effort, and we encourage anyone who suspects red crown rot to report affected fields and submit samples to help document its occurrence. What to look for: Red crown rot often occurs in[Read More…]



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Indiana has received quite a bit of rain in the last few months, and fields are flooded throughout the state. How can you determine if you just have a flooding injury or a seedling disease has taken hold? Standing water leads to root suffocation as roots are oxygen-deprived and CO2 builds up. Digging up a few plants in the area can help determine the issue. If the outer root tissue sloughs off and reveals the white hair-like core of the root, then there may only be a flooding injury. If the roots appear rotted, brown and mushy, then a root rot may have infected the stressed plants. Flooding also kills the nitrogen-fixing bacteria, so you can cut open the soybean nodules to see if they have lost their healthy pink color. In contrast, seedling diseases, such as Phytophthora root and stem rot, can leave the roots brown and rotted, but[Read More…]





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It is time to keep an eye on wheat for diseases and scab risk. There are a number of foliar diseases in wheat to watch out for. These include – leaf, strip and stem (Fig. 1A, B, C), Septoria leaf spot and tan spot (Fig. 2A, B). A number of resources are available to help distinguish wheat leaf diseases and “Identifying Rust Diseases of Wheat and Barley” and Crop Protection Network Encyclopedia Wheat plant samples can always be submitted to the Purdue Plant Pest Diagnostic Lab for disease identification and confirmation. Wheat in southern Indians was flowering (Feekes 10.5.1) when I was in our plots in Vincennes on Saturday (April 25), which is a week or so earlier than I expected. Our plots in West Lafayette were at Feekes 9 (ligule of last leaf just visible). During flowering (anthesis, Fig 3A) warm, wet weather with high relative humidity will favor[Read More…]


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I would like to remind everyone on the resources available for monitoring field crop diseases here in Indiana as planting progresses. The Purdue Field Crop Pathology Team will be tracking diseases across Indiana and will post updates here in Pest & Crop, on our website https://indianafieldcroppathology.com/ and with the Crop Protection Network Crop Lookout Tool (https://cropprotectionnetwork.org/crop-lookout). You can also follow me on X @DTelenko. National disease tracking and prediction programs are place to monitor for some the more economically important diseases in the U. S., such as Fusarium head blight in wheat (Fig. 1), wheat stripe rust (Fig. 1), southern rust of corn, and tar spot (Fig 2). In addition, the Crop Protection Network site hosts collaborative outputs on important issues affecting field crops in the U. S. and Canada, this site has numerous resources and fungicide efficacy tables for corn, soybean, and wheat. There are also a few other[Read More…]




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