December 8, 2004
Source:  Tuscaloosa News, AP, 11 Dec 2004 [edited]

Soybean rust blankets Alabama, agricultural expert says

Soybean rust [SR] has been spotted in at least 10 counties and threatens next year's [2005] entire crop, according to plant experts tracing its first Alabama invasion. Dr. Ed Sikora, an Auburn University plant pathologist,
said the current soybean crop has been harvested, and growers plan meetings on how to prevent the disease from sweeping into next year's planting.

Dr. Tomm Johnson, who tracks plant diseases for the state Agriculture Department, said the fungus has been spotted in Mobile, Baldwin, Escambia, Monroe, Houston, Cullman, Blount, Tuscaloosa, Perry, and Dallas counties.
He said that wherever good soybean leaf samples were found, SR was present. He expects it will threaten the entire state by spring [2005]. "It blankets Alabama," Johnson said.

It could cost up to USD 35 an acre for fungicides to treat fields to kill SR. Growers will have to decide if it's worth the extra cost when compared to the future price of soybeans, which is not yet available. Underwood hopes a cold winter will kill the fungus, but he expects it will survive in Florida.

Yield losses associated with SR have generally ranged from 10 to 80 percent if the soybean field is untreated, federal agriculture officials say. Once SR invades a field, it must be treated within a week. Left untreated, plants may become entirely defoliated in 10-14 days.

Some chemical products for use against the disease are already permitted in Alabama, but the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is expected to grant emergency exemptions for more products effective in eliminating SR, Sikora said.

Sikora has been watching for the disease in the South since it 1st appeared several years ago in South America, devastating 70-80 percent of the crop. He said scientists believe it may have arrived on 16 Sep 2004 with
hurricane Ivan.

[Byline: Garry Mitchell]

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[Fungicides are the only option for disease management. - Mod.DH]