CORN TAR SPOT IS LURKING. ARE YOU PROTECTED?

Disease & Pest Management

Corn

Tar spot’s impact on corn hinges on the timing of rain – that was one of AgriGold Agronomist Kevin Gale’s main takeaways this season. “For tar spot to have an economic impact, we learned you have to have pounding, spore-splashing rain early – in late May or early June,” he says. “That infection early in the growing season can result in the development of tar spot during grain fill.”

Rains didn’t move into his territory of northern Illinois and southern Wisconsin until late June, so tar spot arrived too late to have much of an impact. Farmers in other areas of the country, like central Iowa, northeast Kansas and south-central Illinois, weren’t as lucky; they observed tar spot much earlier in the season.

Regardless of how you fared this season, tar spot will remain an annual threat. “Tar spot has shown up every year since its 2015 introduction to the Corn Belt,” Gale says, noting the disease’s ability to overwinter. “Farmers need to remain vigilant and ready to manage the disease if conditions are conducive to its development. Fortunately, we have hybrids and management techniques to help.”

CORN HYBRIDS ARE FARMERS’ BEST DEFENSE AGAINST TAR SPOT

Hybrid selection should be a farmer’s No. 1 defense against tar spot, according to Gale. While no hybrids are resistant to the disease, some are tolerant. AgriGold includes tar spot tolerance ratings in its seed profile guides.

“As farmers deal with tar spot year after year, they are increasingly looking for products with higher tolerance to tar spot,” Gale says. “Planting tolerant hybrids can provide peace of mind they won’t get hammered in heavy infestation years when tar spot can cost farmers up to 60 bushels an acre.”

AgriGold groups hybrids into genetic families based on both their underlying genetics and agronomic characteristics. Of the genetic families planted in his area, Gale reports Field GX™ Family B hybrids offer the best tar spot tolerance. “Hybrids such as A636-16, A638-19, A643-37 and A644-19 have provided higher tar spot tolerance,” he details.

SCOUT FIELDS TO PROTECT CROPS AND PREPARE FOR NEXT SEASON

Fungicide applications and crop rotation can also limit tar spot’s impact, according to Gale. He ranks fungicide as the second most important management tool. Scouting for tar spot and other threats is also a must.

“Now is a great opportunity to scout your fields and see how your hybrids held up to diseases like tar spot,” Gale says. “If you’re starting to see some disease show up, you may need to prioritize which fields you harvest first.”

His main concern heading into harvest is stalk quality, given an array of stressors including Fusarium crown rot infection, potassium deficiency and anthracnose, along with drought and heat stress.

“From a disease standpoint, tar spot has not presented many issues in my territory this year,” Gale says. “But next season could be entirely different.”

To make sure your hybrid portfolio includes protection against tar spot, reach out to your local AgriGold agronomist or district sales manager.

Performance Stories

Colwich, Kansas

Tony Spexarth

Raising 100 bu beans has been a goal on our farm the last few years now. We planted 4190RX this year and at this point in the season, I have really high hopes that they will reach that goal. They are looking great. Planting early is one of the key elements that I think will help us achieve this goal. I value working with my AgriGold team to push toward our goals.
Chillicothe, Missouri

The Price Family

AgriGold has the best service of any company I’ve ever worked with. From sales to agronomy, they care about our success, and most importantly, they have a line-up of hybrids that is second to none.
Owensboro, Kentucky

Scott Ebelhar

We've been raising AgriGold soybeans since they started selling them. AgriGold has helped us to increase our average soybean yield year after year. Our Seed Representative, Jared Mathies, along with our agronomist, Josh Johnston, deliver a one-two punch by matching the right varieties with our soil types which has helped us achieve the yields we covet.
St. Francisville, Illinois

Mcclure Farms

With record breaking rainfall in 2019 and record breaking cold temps to start 2020, we have been reminded once again that we continue to underestimate the potential and the resiliency of the soybean.
Lake City, Iowa

Mark Schleisman

We like planting AgriGold for two reasons: 1.) Our AgriGold Key Account Specialist helps us pick the best hybrids available for our situations. 2.) When we plant these hybrids, they perform as expected or even better... high yield and great agronomics!
Templeton, Iowa

Ben Klocke

AgriGold offers a nice lineup of hybrids and varieties that perform great on different soil types to give me maximum ROI.
Vincennes, Indiana

Alex Rusch

We have been customers for a long time and AgriGold has always had good genetics and stands up against competitors when it comes to performance. Our AgriGold rep does a great job scouting our fields and is always there for us with solid agronomic advice. Our favorite AgriGold corn hybrids are A6659 and A647-90. Their standability, yield potential and dry down capacity are great compared to competitors. When it comes to soybeans, we really like 3850s and 2900s. We actually were one of the first farms to plant AgriGold soybeans and were THE first to have AgriGold soybeans delivered to our farm. We have never regretted that decision in the years since.
Walnut, Iowa

Kyle Clayton

I trust AgriGold for industry-leading genetics and their professional agronomy and sales support.