Soybean rust found in a Pee Dee county

By: Eric Walters | SCNow
Published: October 01, 2008

Soybean rust has been reported in seven South Carolina counties since mid-September. According to a press release, the late season outbreak is unlikely to cause significant

damage to crops.

Soybean rust is brown in appearance on the plant’s leaves and is a disease that causes premature defoliation, early maturation and severe loss of yield through reduction in the

number of pods and seeds, and decreased seed weight.

John Mueller, soybean pathologist and director of the Clemson University Edisto Research and Education Center, said that most fields are well into the late growing season and

disease management programs do not need to change.

The affected counties are: Allendale, Colleton, Darlington, Dorchester, Hampton, Lexington and Orangeburg.

Most fields have been sprayed at least once, Mueller said, so any damage will be minimal.

There may be exceptions, Mueller said. Farmers with soybean crops that have just begun to fill pods, and plan to spray for insects, may want to include a fungicide, Mueller said.

Farms in Darlington County with soybeans still filling pods, where it has been more than two weeks since the fields were sprayed, should consider applying an additional fungicide spray.

For more information on Edisto’s soybean research visit http://www.clemson.edu/edisto/soybeans/