Post by joyce on Oct 13, 2007 16:41:25 GMT -6
Soybean rust found in Gibson County
Asian soybean rust has been spotted in some Tennessee crops, the UT Extension service reports, but the disease has had little impact on this year's crop.
The disease was found on leaf samples collected by Dr. Angela Thompson, a soybean specialist, on Oct. 3 from a field plot at the UT Milan Research and Education Center, according to a news release.
Farmers are fortunate the disease didn't hit until the end of the growing season, when most soybeans are reaching maturity and many have already been harvested, the release says. Soybeans earned farmers about $278 million in cash receipts in 2006 and are among the state's top crops.
"Most soybean plants in Tennessee have been harvested and very little green leaf tissue remains in the field," UT Extension plant pathologist Beth Long said.
However, an early freeze and extended drought have both harmed this year's crop. Yields are down from 39 bushels per harvested acre in 2006 to an estimated 24 bushels per acre this year due to drought. This year's production is forecast to reach about 25.2 million bushels, down 57 percent from last year's 44 million bushels.
Dr. Melvin Newman, with the UT Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology in Jackson, says the drought in West Tennessee at critical stages of the growing season may have prevented soybean rust from showing up earlier.
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Production is really down this year and now this. But I guess it's good it waited till late to show up. Just seems Tennessee is doomed this year with all that has went on.
Asian soybean rust has been spotted in some Tennessee crops, the UT Extension service reports, but the disease has had little impact on this year's crop.
The disease was found on leaf samples collected by Dr. Angela Thompson, a soybean specialist, on Oct. 3 from a field plot at the UT Milan Research and Education Center, according to a news release.
Farmers are fortunate the disease didn't hit until the end of the growing season, when most soybeans are reaching maturity and many have already been harvested, the release says. Soybeans earned farmers about $278 million in cash receipts in 2006 and are among the state's top crops.
"Most soybean plants in Tennessee have been harvested and very little green leaf tissue remains in the field," UT Extension plant pathologist Beth Long said.
However, an early freeze and extended drought have both harmed this year's crop. Yields are down from 39 bushels per harvested acre in 2006 to an estimated 24 bushels per acre this year due to drought. This year's production is forecast to reach about 25.2 million bushels, down 57 percent from last year's 44 million bushels.
Dr. Melvin Newman, with the UT Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology in Jackson, says the drought in West Tennessee at critical stages of the growing season may have prevented soybean rust from showing up earlier.
***************************************************
Production is really down this year and now this. But I guess it's good it waited till late to show up. Just seems Tennessee is doomed this year with all that has went on.
