ASK THE AGRONOMIST BLOG

Stine’s Ask the Agronomist blog is your source to the latest information from our expert team, including advice and insight on field practices, product recommendations, planting and harvest updates, new technologies, crop management, innovative research and information about how to keep your farm operation running smoothly year round. 

  • FOUR OF THE MOST COMMON DISEASES IN SOYBEANS
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    FOUR OF THE MOST COMMON DISEASES IN SOYBEANS

    June 01, 2023

    Posted by Stine Seed in Crop Management

    With 83% of the nation’s soybean crop in the ground and 56% emerged, growers need to research and prepare for common soybean diseases that could affect their crops throughout the busy growing season. It’s never too early to get ahead of these potentially yield-robbing threats to your soybean acres.

    “Growers need to be prepared for the possibility of losing soybean yield to diseases,” says Tom Larson, Stine’s director of agronomy. “Last year, for example, 4.4% of the potential estimated soybean production was lost due to diseases. From stem and root rots to leaf blights, it’s important to be proactive throughout the growing season to get ahead of these common problems in soybean production.”

    WHAT ARE THE MAJOR DISEASES OF SOYBEANS?

    Sclerotinia stem rot (white mold), sudden death syndrome (SDS), charcoal rot and Phytophthora leaf and stem rot are some of the most common soybean diseases. Combined, these four soybean stem diseases destroyed almost 45 million bushels in 2022. Other diseases (leaf and aboveground), such as Cercospora leaf blight, frogeye leaf spot and Septoria brown rot, damaged close to 13 million bushels last year. It’s critical to understand the environments these diseases thrive in and how you can prevent them, if not this year, then the next.   

    SOYBEAN DISEASE IDENTIFICATION AND CONTROL

    Soybean disease identification can help protect your soil and crops to produce maximum yield this growing season.   

    Named the leading soybean stem disease in 2022, soybean sudden death syndrome symptoms can appear between R1 and R6 growing stages as random yellow spots between leaf veins. Other SDS symptoms include soft, rotten roots; stem discoloration; necrosis of the leaf tissue between the veins; yellowing of leaves; and leaf drop. While infection of roots may occur early in the season, symptoms usually don’t develop until late July or August. The disease prefers cool, wet soils. Planting SDS-tolerant varieties is an effective way to limit your crop from developing disease. Additionally, crop rotation, tillage and the staggering of planting dates can help limit the disease.

    “SDS is one of the most destructive diseases in soybeans,” says Larson. “Experts from Iowa State University Extension and Outreach conducted a study and found that, in areas with severe infestation, SDS can cause up to a 40% yield loss, especially when symptoms develop early. In 2022 alone, SDS destroyed close to 19 million bushels.”

    More common in cool, humid and wet growing conditions, white mold can cause significant yield loss. Known for its fluffy white, cotton-like appearance on soybean stems, initial symptoms appear from R3 to R6 as gray to white lesions on plant stems. White mold can eventually lead to leaf death, stem rot and flower wilt. White mold overwinters in the soil and can do so for several years. Experts note it can easily spread to new fields when improperly cleaned seed is used and by the movement of infested soil.

    “White mold can cause significant yield loss upwards of 10% bushel per acre,” says Larson. “We’ve seen it devastate fields. It should be a top concern for growers always, but there are ways to mitigate white mold by planting soybean varieties that offer some resistance to the disease and through crop rotation to small grains.”

    Phytophthora root and stem rot of soybeans occurs in cool, wet conditions. The disease typically appear between VE and R6. A dark brown lesion on the lower stem that extends up from the taproot of the plant is the most common characteristic of the disease. Other Phytophthora root and stem rot symptoms can include yellowing of leaves, soft/rotting stems and roots and wilted plants. The disease is more severe in no-till fields or in areas that are susceptible to flooding. Tillage, seed treatments and planting resistant varieties are suggested for healthy soybean growth.

    Caused by the soilborne fungus Macrophomina phaseolina, charcoal rot of soybeans issues the most damage when weather conditions are hot and dry. Early signs of charcoal rot include red to brown lesions on the roots and lower stems, which then turn to black specks. To help battle charcoal rot, planting the right variety, crop rotation and residue management can produce top yield and keep the disease at bay.

    Contact your local Stine® agronomist or sales rep for more information on common soybean diseases and how to treat and prevent them now and in the future. Stine offers a full line of the industry’s most sought-after traits to help growers produce the most yield on their soybean acres.

     

     

  • CORN AND SOYBEAN PLANTING SEASON PROGRESS REPORT: PART 2
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    CORN AND SOYBEAN PLANTING SEASON PROGRESS REPORT: PART 2

    May 25, 2023

    Posted by Stine Seed in Planting

    For many corn and soybean growers, the end of planting season is near. The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service’s (NASS) weekly crop progress report for May 21 states that 81% of corn and 66% of soybean acres are planted. Of corn planted, 52% has emerged. The 2023 corn planting progress is 12% ahead of last year at this time and 6% ahead of the five-year average (2018–2022). Of soybeans planted, 36% have emerged. Soybean planting progress is 19% ahead of last year at this time and 14% ahead of the five-year average. 

    Crop progress in Stine’s regions
    Last week we reported crop progress from Stine® Regions 4, 5, 12, 13, 20 and 27, which encompass states like Texas, Iowa, Missouri, Kansas, Illinois and Nebraska. Here are the latest updates from some of our other regions throughout the country.

    Aaron Stockton, Region 9 RSA (southeast Kansas, southwest Missouri and northwest Arkansas)
    Planting season has been great here in Region 9. We are essentially done with corn planting and have a good start on soybeans. Corn is at the V3–V6 stage and looking good in most areas. Most soybeans look great as well. It has been several years since we have had this much ground covered and crops looking this good. Wheat harvest should start in a month or so, and then double crop soybean season will be underway. Looking forward to a great season!

    Kevin Ryan, Region 14 RSA (Arkansas, Mississippi, Louisiana and Tennessee)
    All corn is planted; it’s from V8 to tasseling. We started out early, and it’s been a very smooth planting season. We had a few rains but had spells where we could plant for a week straight. Corn looks great! Everybody has added fertilizer to it. Weather is cooler than normal, and it’s growing fast. We are 80% to 90% done with soybeans, and quite a few fields have emerged. This has been a very good year; we’ve had the least amount of replant that I can remember. All rice is planted. Growers are now focused on planting cotton. All in all, it’s been as good a planting season as I can remember. We’re way ahead of normal. If we can beat the heat this summer, and it looks like we will, we should have a great crop. 

    Paige Harris, Region 15 RSA (northeast Wisconsin, Michigan, New York)
    Region 15 is about 75% planted for both corn and soybeans. There was some early planting due to good weather early on. But with a cool, wet spring, some producers got a late start. Even with the cool conditions, we are seeing great emergence from the Stine Enlist E3® soybeans and MX Series Corn. With this stretch of nice, dry weather, most should be able to finish planting soon. This spring is setting up to have excellent conditions for the whole state of Michigan.

    Katie Lorenz, Region 21 RSA (northern and eastern North Dakota, western Minnesota)
    North Dakota is taking full advantage of their open window with suitable planting conditions. Dust is in the air as equipment is going nonstop to get the 2023 crop in while still maintaining adequate topsoil and subsoil moisture. Corn is 40% planted, ahead of last year at only 20%, but behind the five-year average of 50%. Soybeans are 25% planted throughout the state, ahead of last year’s 10%. If hard rain holds off, we will successfully get the crop in and see emergence early next week. Early GDUs with light pockets of rain could set this year up for record yields with Stine Seed!

    What is the USDA Crop Progress Report?
    The USDA NASS crop progress report is released every week throughout the busy planting, growing and harvest seasons. The report tracks crop progress by state and includes the 18 states that planted 92% of the corn acreage and 95% of the soybean acreage in 2022. The USDA NASS crop progress report features current week-ending results, the year prior results, and the five-year average for planting, emergence and crop conditions for primary crops throughout the U.S., including corn, soybeans, cotton, sorghum, rice, peanuts, sugar beets, sunflowers, wheat and more.

    For more crop progress updates in your region, contact your local Stine RSA.

  • CORN AND SOYBEAN PLANTING SEASON PROGRESS REPORT: PART 1
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    CORN AND SOYBEAN PLANTING SEASON PROGRESS REPORT: PART 1

    May 18, 2023

    Posted by Stine Seed in Planting

    The USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service’s (NASS) weekly crop progress report states that 65% of corn and 49% of soybean acres are planted. The 2023 corn planting progress is 20% ahead of last year at this time and 6% ahead of the five-year average (2018–2022). Soybean planting progress is 22% ahead of last year at this time and 13% ahead of the five-year average.

    Crop progress in Stine’s regions

    With a reach spanning across the country, Stine’s grower customers are busy in the field. Whether they’re still waiting to get soybeans in the ground or are already enjoying the growing season, reports vary from region to region. Here are the latest updates from some of our regional sales agronomists (RSAs) throughout the country.

    Dustin Ellis, Region 4 RSA (central, northwest and northeast central Iowa)
    Region 4 is about 98% to 100% done with corn and 80% to 90% done with soybean planting. We have had some rain the last few days delay things, but it looks like everyone will be back at it this week. Corn and soybeans both look good for the weather conditions. Even our earliest crops, which were planted in mid-April, look good and have good stands. I attribute this to great genetics and good soil conditions at the time of planting. It seems like our mid-April crops were sitting in cold but dry soils, which I believe is one of the reasons they stayed healthy and emerged with warmer, moist conditions. The early- to mid-planted April crops are the same height as crops planted at the end of April and the first part of May. It will be interesting to see if there’s a yield advantage with early-planted crops. We won’t know until the combines start up in the fall, but I will say that if growers would have waited, in some cases, they would be farther behind now with the later rain events, which could have caused planting corn and soybeans into late May or early June. 

    Chad Kuehl, Region 5 RSA (southeast Nebraska)
    Things are moving along in southeast Nebraska. We have a good number of growers starting to finish up. Corn is around 90% finished, and soybeans are around 70% complete. Overall, the region is still really dry and in need of a good rain.

    Jake Anderson, Region 12 RSA (western and central Illinois)
    Planting season is mostly wrapped up, and the growing season is underway here in Region 12. The first run of planting in April saw seeds sitting in cold soil for two weeks or more. We've seen some replant situations in the early round of planting due to tough emergence conditions. Overall, things are looking good, and the weather has been mostly favorable. A lot of corn is at the one or two-collar stage, and we’re seeing soybeans put out their first trifoliate leaves.  

    Kevin Krabel, Region 13 RSA (central Illinois)
    We’re around 80% done planting corn and soybeans in Region 13. We just received some much-needed rain that helped soybean emergence in areas where we were on the verge of massive replant needs. Corn emergence seems to be pretty good across the region. Although due to a good portion of the corn being planted in cooler ground temps, it didn’t all come up as evenly as one might like. We’ll have to keep an eye on that throughout the growing season. So far, it’s been the smoothest and quickest planting season in the last four to five years, and everyone should be done in the next few weeks. 

    Darrin Petty, Region 20 RSA (southwest Iowa, northwest Missouri, northeast and north-central Kansas)
    In my region back in April, everybody started planting, and it was nonstop. It wasn’t raining, so everyone kept planting until about a week or so ago when we got some much-needed rain. It was a good break for everybody to get caught up. Most everyone in my region is done planting corn. For soybeans, it varies because some are just starting planting and others have completed. I would estimate we’re about 60% done.

    We’ve had an ideal planting season for the most part; the soil has been great! Everybody needed rain though, so it was very welcomed a few weeks back.

    Emergence has been going well, but we also received quite a bit of rain in some areas. Some of the popular corn products planted in the region this year are Stine® 9808E (one that always works in our region), 9817-30 and 9752-32. One we’re really excited about is the new 9818-32, so we’ll keep a close eye on it throughout the season. We’ve also spent time working with our agronomy department and sales reps to plant corn and soybean plots, so we look forward to seeing the new products in the pipeline that will be available to growers next year. 

    Todd Oliver, Region 27 (Texas and Oklahoma)
    Corn is in full tassel in south Texas, and planting is complete in central and north Texas. West Texas and the Texas Panhandle are in the process of planting, but dry weather is making it a challenge. In Oklahoma, they are finally getting first-crop beans in the ground, and second-crop beans should start going in the next week or so. Dry weather has also plagued Oklahoma. The last two years have been the driest on record in West Texas and Oklahoma. We are hoping that a shift in weather will be in the farmers’ favor.

    What is the USDA Crop Progress Report?

    The USDA NASS Crop Progress Report is released every week throughout the busy planting, growing and harvest seasons. The report tracks crop progress by state and includes the 18 states that planted 92% of the corn acreage and 95% of the soybean acreage in 2022. The USDA NASS crop progress report features current week-ending results, the year prior results, and the five-year average for planting, emergence and crop conditions for primary crops throughout the U.S., including corn, soybeans, cotton, sorghum, rice, peanuts, sugar beets, sunflowers, wheat and more.

    For more crop progress updates in your region, contact your local Stine RSA.