By Kiersten Wise
Fields that were planted prior to the cool, wet conditions that have persisted across the state may experience stand establishment problems. Poor stand establishment may be due to several factors, including seedling blight diseases. Several different organisms can cause seedling blight diseases under a range of environmental conditions. The North Central Soybean Research Program and the United Soybean Board have sponsored several publications that can help farmers and agribusiness personnel understand and manage soybean seedling diseases.
Soybean Seedling Diseases—This publication discusses the organisms that cause soybean seedling blights, the conditions that favor each disease, and general management practices for preventing seedling blights.
http://cropprotectionnetwork.org/soybean-diseases/soybean-seedling-diseases/.
Scouting for Soybean Seedling Diseases and Disorders—This two-page scouting card is an excellent reference to help distinguish seedling blight diseases from common seedling disorders, such as herbicide injury. http://cropprotectionnetwork.org/soybean-diseases/scouting-soybean-seedling-diseases-disorders/.
Fungicide Efficacy for Control of Soybean Seedling Diseases—This publication is an annually updated table that includes the efficacy of the most widely marketed fungicide seed treatments against seedling blight pathogens. Ratings are developed by a national group of soybean pathologists as part of the NCERA-137 Soybean Disease Multistate Research Project. https://mdc.itap.purdue.edu/item.asp?Item_Number=BP-163-W.
Remember that to accurately determine the specific organism responsible for a suspected seedling blight issue, it is necessary to submit samples to a diagnostic lab such as the Purdue Plant and Pest Diagnostic Lab. https://www.ppdl.purdue.edu/PPDL/index.html.