Tar Spot, Other Diseases Top Pest Management Field Day

DR. KEVIN BRADLEY 

COLUMBIA, MISSOURI

 University of Missouri Extension specialists will share the latest research at the July 11 Pest Management Field Day, says MU Extension state weed scientist Kevin Bradley. The annual event will be at the MU Bradford Research and Extension Center, Columbia.

State extension plant pathologist Mandy Bish will tell how to identify and manage tar spot, a yield-robbing corn disease of increasing concern. Tar spot has been confirmed in 19 additional Missouri counties in 2024, bringing the total to 52 of the state’s 114 counties.

Bish will also discuss other diseases affecting Missouri corn, soybean and wheat crops.

She will be joined by Ivair Valmorbida, new state extension entomologist. He will show how to scout and sample soybean for pests and how to determine threshold levels. He will share the latest research-based management tools.

Attendees will see results from spray drone research, says Bradley. They also will hear updates on new weed management options for pastures and ways to manage herbicide-resistant waterhemp.

There is a small fee for the event, which includes lunch, refreshments and guided wagon tours of research farm plots. Register at https://bit.ly/4cuf426. For more information, contact Heather Nichols at nicholshn@missouri.edu or 573-882-4303.

The MU Bradford Research and Extension Center is 8 miles east of Columbia at 4968 Rangeline Road. Registration begins at 8 a.m.

Continuing education units will be awarded for certified crop advisers.  ∆

DR. KEVIN BRADLEY: University of Missouri