Growers may be concerned about moldy grain and vomitoxin development in storage, but they shouldn’t rely on chemical treatments to prevent any further contamination, says an Ohio State University Extension plant pathologist.

Applying large amounts of lime can result in fairly rapid and substantial increases in soil pH at shallow soil depths. Although the lime eventually moves deeper into the soil profile, and the pH at the soil surface equilibrates and decreases somewhat, the temporary increase in pH can have consequences for the persistence and activity of herbicides applied this spring.

By following a few simple recommendations, farmers who apply manure as a fertilizer to their no-till field can decrease the chance that pathogens end up in runoff and pose environmental and health hazards.

Multiple years of OSU research on fall and spring no-till herbicide treatments have consistently shown that the value and effectiveness of residual herbicides for soybeans is maximized when they are applied in the spring, not the fall.

No-tillers should be keeping an eye on their soybeans for water-borne diseases that may have cropped up during the recent heavy rains, says Ann Dorrance, an Ohio State University Extension plant pathologist says.

Technology developed by researchers at The Ohio State University and the U.S. Department of Agriculture Agricultural Research Service (USDA-ARS) that will help manage the spread of one of the worst diseases affecting crops such as wheat and barley, has been licensed to Sci Protek, Inc., based in Vista, Calif.

While rising commodity prices may have led to recent changes in this spring’s cropping plans, a No-Till Farmer survey of growers last fall supported a significant increase in continuous corn acres this year.