Corn leafhopper keeps pathologists on alert

In the battle against crop diseases, the game is always changing, providing fresh challenges for farmers and plant pathologists.

Plant diseases such as red crown rot in soybeans are moving into more parts of the Midwest, and last year, Extension personnel in Missouri and Oklahoma identified corn leafhopper and corn stunt disease in their states for the first time, pushed up from the South.

The corn leafhopper is a tiny insect that carries pathogens that causes corn stunt disease, which can reduce growth, development and yield. The insects can also cause damage by feeding on corn.

Ashleigh Faris, Oklahoma State University cropping systems Extension entomologist, says corn leafhoppers have populations in Texas and made their way north, likely aided by storms or strong winds. She remembers receiving the call to check a south-central Oklahoma field around the end of July.

“Last year we received our first call about there possibly being something in a corn field they didn’t know what it was,” Faris says. “…We saw evidence of heavy corn stunting.”