Sudden death syndrome visible on soybean leaves. Stanton, MN 2019

With soybean planting only weeks, possibly days behind you, field conditions are likely still very fresh in your mind and chances are, it was cool and wet. As you likely know, those were the ideal conditions for Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS) to infect your seedlings, but you won’t know for sure until the symptoms start to show up in July and August. Now, think back to your field practices. Did you have your soil tested for the presence of Soybean Cyst Nematode (SCN)? What you may not know is if you have SCN in your fields there’s a good chance its root feeding has put your soybeans at higher risk for SDS.

SDS is a fungal disease that has a higher risk of soybean infection when SCN is present. SDS is among the most devastating soilborne soybean diseases the U.S. When SDS occurs along with SCN, disease symptoms appear earlier and are more severe. The earlier severe symptoms appear, the higher the likelihood that yield is reduced.

Production practices that keep SCN at low levels may reduce the risk for SDS. We recommend that if you have a field infested with SDS you should also test it for SCN, and if SCN is present, you should develop a management plan for both pests.

Coming soon is a new seed treatment option to protect your soybeans from SDS and SCN. We’re awaiting Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) registration on a seed treatment containing Adepidyn^® fungicide that will be marketed as Saltro® fungicide seed treatment. In trials, we’ve seen protection from SDS without visible signs of plant stress caused by phytotoxicity, including stunting, reduced plant stands, greater susceptibility to pests or weather, or reduced below ground root mass. Additionally, Adepidyn fungicide has shown consistent yield improvement over the leading SDS competitor under high SDS pressure.

If you know SCN and SDS are problems in your field, upon EPA registration, you will be able plant soybeans treated with Adepidyn fungicide plus Clariva® Elite Beans seed treatment so they’re protected from the 2 biggest yield robbers.

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Adepidyn/Saltro is not currently registered for sale or use as a seed treatment in the United States and is not being offered for sale.