August 7, 2013

Jennifer Rees, Extension Educator in Clay County: Southern rust has been confirmed in samples from Clay, Thayer, Nuckolls, Fillmore, and Adams counties in south central Nebraska. Most fields where it was identified were sprayed last week but few fields beyond that have been sprayed at this time. It appears to be expanding in very localized areas of the region. Decisions are being made regarding how to salvage crops damaged in an Aug. 1 storm that affected Clay County and many other counties. Continue to follow CropWatch as new stories and considerations are posted.

Wayne Ohnesorg, Extension Educator in Madison, Wayne, Pierce, and Stanton Counties:  In the last two weeks growers in the area have welcomed moisture of 1-4 inches depending on location. Some corn fields are in the blister stage while some are pollinating. Soybean fields are generally around R3. I am noticing widespread issues with canopy closure in soybean fields this year. Insect pest pressure is low in corn and soybean. Soybean aphids are present, but at more than five aphids per plant to well below the economic threshold of 250 aphids per plant. I have received an isolated report of grasshopper damage in a corn field from Thurston County.

Todd Whitney, Extension Educator in Hamilton County: Crop conditions in Hamilton County are very good with 2-3 inches of rain throughout county. The 10 days of cool, cloudy weather at the end of our tassel to blister period has also been a real benefit to irrigators.There was some moderate to severe hail damage in southern Hamilton County southeast of Giltner. Mostly fungicide spraying is preventative at this point.

Ron Seymour, Extension Educator in Adams County: The condition of most of the crops in Adams County is very good. Most corn is in blister stage or just past, with some fields still behind due to the cool spring. The soybeans are all in the reproductive stage and look good. In the last week the area received 1-2 inches of rain. Soil moisture conditions have improved and a number of farmers have taken the opportunity to turn their wells off for a few days.

Gary Zoubek, Extension Educator in York County: Our ETgages in the York area this past week through Monday dropped 0.75 inch or about 0.82 inch or 0.12 inch/day for corn and soybeans. We received 0.55 to over 2 inches of rain, providing an opportunity for educators to catch up if they were behind.  Many of the soybeans are in R4 and nearing R5 while the corn is in browning silk to the milk stage. Last year at this time, we were at ¾ dent.

Tom Hunt, Extension Entomologist at the Haskell Ag Lab, Concord: Fields are wet here. We've had a few reports of economically damaging populations of potato leafhoppers (PLH) in alfalfa. Be particularly watchful of new alfalfa and always recheck fields after storm fronts pass through, as PLH are swept up in winds and can infest fields as fronts pass through. The only reports of soybean aphid have been at very, very low numbers; however, weather fronts also bring soybean aphids. Temperatures are relatively mild, which favors soybean aphid population growth, so keep scouting. There is still time for economically damaging populations to develop. A few reports of rootworm problems in areas with long-term corn-on-corn. No other significant insect pest problems have been reported.