While the heat mid-growing season hasbeen an equal opportunity cooker, rain-fall distribution has not been as equita-ble in our area. While July was overallabove normal in rainfall, in some loca-tions it was more generous in amountand timing. This has given us a lot ofvariability in vegetative growth in allcrops. In soybeans, locations that re-ceived plenty of rain have lots of vege-tative growth and some big, lush plants.Along with high plant populations, thismakes up one side of the disease trian-gle in which Sclerotinia White Moldinfections can flourish. Another sideof the disease triangle is the source ofinoculum. The ideal conditions forWhite Mold in 2009 gave us plenty ofinoculum for this year. The third sideof the disease triangle, the environ-mental conditions, is at least partly inour favor. While White Mold needshigh humidity under the crop canopy tospread infection, it also needs relativelycool temperatures like we had last year.Infection doesnot advance at temps above 90 degrees.This could be the one thing that keepsus from an ideal setup for big yieldlosses to the disease.

Sclerotinia White Mold is now anannual threat to soybean production.Although it was discovered in centralIllinois in 1948, it was never more thana sporadic, localized problem until the

early 1990’s. Since then it has becomeprevalent throughout the North Centralstates. Possible reasons for this includecultural practices that promote a greatercrop canopy. The increase in WhiteMold could also be due to changes inthe genetic base of soybean varieties orchanges in the Sclerotinia pathogen it-self.

Sclerotinia infects many differentbroadleaf hosts. We have already spot-ted infections this season in cabbageand tomato crops. The telltale scle-rotia fruiting bodies (rat turds) can beeasily found on the outside and insideof bleached out, infected stems. Thesclerotia serve as the overwintering sur-vival structures. During harvest, thesclerotia are harvested with the seed orreturned to the soil with crop residues.Burying the sclerotia seems to enhancetheir survival ability. In the spring andsummer the sclerotia germinate directlyor form mushroom like apothecia thatrelease spores. The developing fungusneeds a nutrient source prior to infect-ing plants. On soybeans, flowers serveas the nutrient source. The subsequentinfections occur on stems near a nodewhere the pathogen colonized deadflowers. Fungicides can be effective ifapplied when the plant is flowering butnot later. Infected plants first appearwilted, with the leaves and stems turn-ing brown to tan.

Sclerotinia White Mold -Doug Mitchell, CCA

I N S I D E

T H I S I S S U E :

Sclerotinia

White Mold

2

Food Safety

Harvest Info.

2

Yield Monitor

Calibration

3

Veris Soil

Sampling

4

W I D M E R &

A S S O C I A T E S , L T D . The W&A Q&A

A U G U S T 2 0 1 0V O L U M E 2 I S S U E 5

F O R T H E

R E C O R D :

Data from OARDC

Fremont, Matt Hofelich

July Rainfall: 1.74”

Cumulative GDDs: 812

Soil Temperature: 75.5

Websites of Interest:

www.widmerassoc.com

www.weather.com

http://vegnet.osu.edu

http://corn.osu.edu

Click here to: Visit us

on Facebook!

Dedicated to Excellence in Growing Crops

P A G E 2

Sclerotinia White Mold (Continued from page 1)

Dead plants stand erect above the soybean canopy with the leaves still onthe stem. The level of yield loss is dependent on the number of plants in-fected in the field and how early in the season the plants are infected anddie. Disease incidence needs to be 10% or higher for significant yieldlosses to occur.

Reduced tillage is preferred for fields with a long history of WhiteMold. In no-till, a large portion of the sclerotia germinate under corn orother non-host crops. This reduces the number of viable sclerotia in thefield. Recent research from Iowa State University suggests that long termno-till results in a smaller risk of White Mold than conventional tillage.References: (North Central Soybean Research Program: Plant Health Ini-tiative); (O.S.U. Extension Publication AC-45-08)

1) Pre-harvest inspection of the field to be harvested.A. Signs of flooding.B. Evidence of visible pesticide contamination.C. Visual evidence of bird or animal activity in the field.D. Evidence workers have not complied with food safety issues.E. Any observed food safety issues on adjacent lands that have or may contaminatethe field to be harvested.

2) Are toilets, hand washing facilities and garbage containers properly stocked and locatednear the field for the harvest crew to use?

3) If the final packing containers are used are they free of evidence of pest activity, for-eign material, clean and free from exposure to the ground?

4) If grading and packing tables are used, is there a documented cleaning and sanita-tion program being used?

5) If re-useable containers (bulk bins, hampers, tubs, etc.) are used, is there a documentedcleaning and sanitation program being used?

6) If harvest tools (knives, etc.) are used:A. Are they made of non-corrosive and easy to clean material?B. Are they subject to a controlled storage and documented cleaning and sanitationprogram?

7) If harvesting aid or machinery is used:A. Are the food contact surfaces constructed of food grade materials?B. Is the harvesting equipment subject to a documented cleaning and sanitationprogram?C. Are only food grade lubricants used on the critical parts of the harvest equip-ment?D. Area all glass issues on the harvesting equipment, in-field trucks, wagons and

tractors protected to prevent contamination of the harvested product?8) If “in-field processing” occurs does the flow of the product ensure that the processed

product is not contaminated by unprocessed products?9) All harvested product is to be coded for the date of harvest, harvest crew and field des-

ignation to enable trace back if it is necessary.

T H E W & A Q & A

Harvesting Food Safety Issues -Rex Marquart, CCA

Nutrients &Natural PlantHormones

The consultants whowork for Widmer &Associates, havemany years of experi-ence with the foliarapplication of nutrients& natural plant hor-mone type products.That is the basis ofour business & hasbeen for many years!We specialize in carry-ing many differentforms of all nutrientsmade especially forfoliar feeding. Wecarry a variety ofmixes, packaged injugs & bulk shuttles tofit the need of anyfoliar application. Wealso have the ability tocustom blend anynutrient combinationyou may want to fit aspecific need or use.We also specialize inhandling fertilizers thatwork well in drip oroverhead fertigationapplications. Talk toyour Widmer consult-ant about any nutrientneeds you may have,we would be happy tohelp you!

Yield Monitor Training

What: Yield Monitor Training/CalibrationWhen: Thursday, September 9thTime: 9:30 a.m.—LunchWhere: Widmer & Associates

953 E. Madison StreetGibsonburg, OH 43431

Brand: Ag Leader; Insight, Edge & Integra

Widmer & Associates, Ltd.

953 East Madison St.

Gibsonburg, OH 43431

Dedicated to Excellence in Growing Crops

www.widmerassoc.com

There are numerous systems in place for collecting

soil samples. Grid sampling, composite samples,

and soils maps are all tools used in selecting man-

agement zones to collect soil samples from. An-

other alternative that we at Widmer & Associates

would recommend is Veris Data Collection. The

Veris machine as shown below is a simple device

that sends an electric current between a series of

flat disc blades which in turn measures electro con-

ductivity of the soil. This soil electro conductivity

has a direct correlation to the soil cation exchange

capacity (CEC).

By using data from theVeris machine, we candetermine more precisemanagement zoneswhich we then collectsoil sample from andcan make recommenda-tions.

Fall Soil Sampling Options - Dusty Sonnenberg, CCA

Widmer & AssociatesAt Farm Science Review

Visit us at Lot #99Adjacent to the Orthman Display

September 21, 22, 23

In the summer after wheat harvest, and in the fallfollowing corn and bean harvest are good times tohave your fields Veris sampled, prior to any tillageor ditching. The generally accepted recommenda-tion is to have soil re-sampled every 3 years.Unless you are certain of the complete uniformityof your fields, composite sampling is usually to toomuch of a shotgun approach, even when it comes toapplying lime to adjust soil pH. On the other hand,grid sampling can become very costly, especiallywhen it comes to larger acreages. A third option aswe discussed is determining crop managementzones based on a Veris soils map. The Veris mapin layman's terms is a refined soils map that morespecifically defines soil types within a field. TheseVeris zones with similar characteristics can begrouped into “management zones” and soil samplescan be pulled.Contact any of the Widmer and Associates team formore information, prices and scheduling of yourVeris soils mapping and sampling this fall!