Home

Vomitoxin management and corn fungicide decisions during pollination

Author(s):
Jason Hartschuh, CCA, Pierce Paul, Stephanie Karhoff, CCA/CPAg

Deoxynivalenol (DON), commonly referred to as vomitoxin, has become a significant problem for Ohio corn growers. What was once considered an every-ten-year problem has now become a yearly challenge in some sections of the state. DON contamination of grain is associated with Gibberella ear rot (GER), a disease caused by the fungus Fusarium graminearum. The Ohio State University Cereal Pathology Lab led by Dr. Pierce Paul has been researching and developing weather-based models to predict when weather conditions are favorable for DON contamination of corn grain.

More...
This Month in History: Western Bean Cutworm

Author(s):
Kelley Tilmon, Andy Michel, Chris DiFonzo

This month marks the 20th anniversary of the arrival of Western bean cutworm in Ohio and Michigan, in 2006. This caterpillar pest of corn and dry beans is a native species with an ancestral range in the Southwest United States. It was originally a pest of these crops in the western plains in the 1900s. By the early 2000s it was found in Iowa. Entomologists Chris DiFonzo (Michigan State) and the late and much-missed Ron Hammond (Ohio State) were fairly confident they caught the wave in Ohio and Michigan at the start, they watched it move across Illinois and I

More...
Battle for the Belt: Season 4, Episode 8 – A Weather Update

Author(s):
Diego Miranda, Maria Kessler, Pedro Gimenes, Laura Lindsey, Aaron Wilson, Osler Ortez

In this episode, Dr. Aaron Wilson provides a weather update for this time of the season. Access the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JhRV84MKUaM You can also read more from Aaron in this week’s newsletter article titled "Wildfire Smoke and Scattered Storms Share the Mid-Summer Skies over Ohio.”

More...
Hazy conditions again: implications for Ohio’s corn and soybean crops

Author(s):
Alexander Lindsey, Laura Lindsey, Osler Ortez

Smoke from wildfires has been more prevalent in recent years, and this year is no exception. Haze from fires is coming into Ohio and other states in the northern region as our crops approach or already are in early reproductive growth stages (Figure 1). Haze at the end of June and early July in 2023 had minimal effects on crop yields (state record yields were observed for both corn and soybeans in 2023).

More...
Decades of No-Till History and the Future of Soil Health

Author(s):
Manbir Rakkar

Walk through the historic no-till research plots and experience the results of 64 years of continuous no-till and crop diversification research. Discover how long-term conservation practices build healthier soils, explore the benefits of cover crops and planting green, and gain practical communication strategies you can put to work. Join us at one of the nation's premier long-term agricultural research sites and learn about another one in Kentucky.

More...
Wildfire Smoke and Scattered Storms Share the Mid-Summer Skies over Ohio

Author(s):
Aaron Wilson

Climate Summary

More...
Lep Monitoring Network Update #14 – Western Bean Cutworm Numbers on the Rise

Author(s):
Rosalind Holt-Frank, Amy Raudenbush, Savannah Ballweg, Justin Baum, Nic Baumer, Lee Beers, CCA, Trevor Corboy, Thomas deHaas, Amanda Douridas, CCA, Nick Eckel, Mary Jo Hassen, Hannah Houser, Seth Kannberg, Alan Leininger, Gigi Neal, Les Ober, CCA, Jordan Penrose, Amanda Perkins, Beth Scheckelhoff, Frank Thayer, Jacob Winters, Kayla Wyse, Curtis Young, CCA, Andy Michel, Kelley Tilmon

Week 14 of our Lep (moth) monitoring covered July 13th – July 19th. WBC numbers continue to increase; they should peak around the end of July. For more information, read below.

More...