News

Don’t use fungicide as insurance on small grains

A plant pathology professor says small grain farmers should not use fungicides unless disease is present.

Dr. Madeleine Smith at the University of Minnesota tells Brownfield many producers are spraying herbicides, and might be tempted to include fungicide in the tank mix thinking it will cover future pathogens.

“When we think about things like rust, those spores can come in at any time into the crop.  So you’ve only got a window of efficacy, which varies a little bit depending on the fungicide.  And if you get spores after that window of efficacy, then that insurance policy doesn’t pay off.”

She says the other issue with spraying when there’s no disease is resistance.

“A lot of these diseases will hang around in the field margin and ditches, and you’re exposing those diseases to that fungicide application even though it’s not directly infecting the crop.  What we end up with in the long-term is resistance to those fungicides.”

Smith says if disease is present, farmers should consider using a fungicide.

She recommends a product like Tilt because it provides good control of most diseases, is relatively inexpensive, and allows for a second application if necessary.