Merging of Soy Health and Field Crops Plant Pathology Websites

I just wanted to take this opportunity to announce that we have a new and integrated website for diseases of field crops. This new website is called: Field Crop Pathology. The URL for this site is: fyi.uwex.edu/fieldcroppathology. For those who have used the Soy Health webpage (and we know that it has been a lot of you), please be assured that the content that was on that website will be fully integrated into our new site. We have been working to standardize the presentation of the material on Soy Health with our new website.

On the new Field Crop Pathology website will be information about diseases of corn, soybean, wheat, and alfalfa. We have tested the search function on the main page and are quite happy with the results for finding materials on this site. We also linked from our main page to several of UW-and UW-Extension associated websites (among others) that we know you are also interested in using. On the Main Page, I will try to write periodic updates about new information available on the website.

Please feel free to contact me with any questions that you have about the new website. We welcome your feedback. We will not be taking down our current websites until we have fully integrated our materials.

Thanks and have a great weekend!

Paul

WSMB Offers Free Soybean Cyst Nematode Testing

The UW-Madison Agronomy Department, in cooperation with the Wisconsin Soybean Marketing Board, is again offering free soybean cyst nematode (SCN) soil testing for Wisconsin growers. This program is intended for growers to sample several of their fields in order to identify if SCN is present and at what levels. For a detailed history of this program as well as the current state of SCN in WI please see Soybean Cyst Nematode Sampling and Testing in Wisconsin.

Growers will be responsible for collecting soil from fields suspected to have SCN and then sending the sample to the SCN testing laboratory for analysis. They will receive a lab report back with the SCN egg count and a brochure to help plan future rotations and other cultural practices to lower SCN infestation if they exist.

We have a limited number of these free kits available and will furnish them on a first come - first served basis at up to four per farm. Crop consultants, advisors, and crop input retailers are encouraged to request kits for their client’s farms. Each kit has a bag and a prepaid mailer for one soil sample, which should represent about 10-15 acres. Both the postage and lab fees are prepaid ($50 value). Anytime before, during, or right after the growing season are great times to collect soil samples for routine soil fertility analysis and for SCN monitoring.

Soil sample test kits are available now and can be requested from My Linh Do at My Linh Do or at 608-262-1390.

For more information on SCN testing and management practices to help reduce the losses from this pest, please contact: Shawn Conley: spconley@wisc.edu; 608-262-7975.

Fusarium Head Blight Alert System - 2011

The U.S. Wheat & Barley Scab Initiative FHB Alert System will again be active in 2011. In addition to adding two more states, there will be options for users to customize the system to target their geographical area better. The goal of the alert system is to enable users to have improved notice (i.e., more timely) about the potential for scab outbreaks. The alert system is tied to the Fusarium Head Blight Risk Assessment Tool and integrates information from predictive models with commentary from state extension specialists. The forecasting system will be available in early March.