What’s That Black Mold on My Wheat?

Jul 07, 2023

The recent rain and humidity is bringing on black sooty mold in wheat, which is just naturally occurring fungal species colonizing the heads as they senesce. Anything that prematurely killed the wheat, including abiotic stress such as drought or diseases like take-all and root rots, will be seeing more of this black sooty mold. Areas of lodged wheat may also develop more of this sooty mold as they will hold moisture for longer than standing grain.

Generally, this sooty mold should not be much of a problem and will blow out the combine during harvest. However, we might see some black point on the grain caused by some of these fungal species, which shows as a black discoloration typically on one end of the grain. Although black point of the grain will not reduce yield, it can affect quality. This will depend on wheat growth stage of infection and disease pressure.

Fungicides applied for head scab may help to reduce the amount of black point. Head scab pressure in general is at low levels across Michigan as the risk for head scab was low during the critical flowering period. No new head scab infections will occur, but any fields that were infected with head scab may accumulate additional mycotoxin during these periods of excessive moisture.

Source : msu.edu

Video: From Conventional to Regenerative: Will Groeneveld’s Journey Back to the Land

"You realize you've got a pretty finite number of years to do this. If you ever want to try something new, you better do it."

That mindset helped Will Groeneveld take a bold turn on his Alberta grain farm. A lifelong farmer, Will had never heard of regenerative agriculture until 2018, when he attended a seminar by Kevin Elmy that shifted his worldview. What began as curiosity quickly turned into a deep exploration of how biology—not just chemistry—shapes the health of our soils, crops and ecosystems.

In this video, Will candidly reflects on his family’s farming history, how the operation evolved from a traditional mixed farm to grain-only, and how the desire to improve the land pushed him to invite livestock back into the rotation—without owning a single cow.

Today, through creative partnerships and a commitment to the five principles of regenerative agriculture, Will is reintroducing diversity, building soil health and extending living roots in the ground for as much of the year as possible. Whether it’s through intercropping, zero tillage (which he’s practiced since the 1980s) or managing forage for visiting cattle, Will’s approach is a testament to continuous learning and a willingness to challenge old norms.

Will is a participant in the Regenerative Agriculture Lab (RAL), a social innovation process bringing together producers, researchers, retailers and others to co-create a resilient regenerative agriculture system in Alberta. His story highlights both the potential and humility required to farm with nature, not against it.