After yet another heat wave, we finally received some reprieve with some consistent rain and cooler temperatures. We were briefly entering a drought across most of the region, but have come back to normal after this past weekend’s rain.

Most corn fields I saw are between R3 (Milk) and R4 (Dough). While disease levels are low, I did find some fields with ear rot, small amounts of tar spot on a lower leaf here and there, as well as some gray leaf spot. Nothing to write home about but the disease is present, and with the current weather conditions, could reproduce and spread rapidly. Overall, if a fungicide was applied, the corn should be fine and protected through end of season. If you have fields with hot spots or disease breakouts entering the R4 corridor, reach out to your agronomist or extension professional to see about options and how to handle those late spray season options.

Soybeans continue to look relatively disease free as they are averaging R5 to R6 and beginning seed fill. Pods are decent size and plentiful on the plants I scouted. The heatwave and dry conditions through flowering has tamped down the white mold risk quite a bit this year. With the current humid and cooler conditions, I do expect frogeye leafspot and SDS to start to show up in fields, and that would be something to monitor as we finish the season. I have not seen any Red Crown Rot so far this season, but it is moving north throughout the state, so that could be a potential disease to look out for as well.

Until next week, stay safe and have a great growing season.