Flag Leaf Emergence – Decision Time

Much of the winter wheat in the state is at the flag leaf growth stage. This is a critical time to consider the need for foliar fungicide applications. Shawn and I recently posted on the coolbean.info website (UWEX Soybean Extension) and to be published in the Wisconsin Crop Manager a new article that poses four questions that should be asked to help guide a decision to spray a fungicide. These questions focus on disease identification, knowing what the variety is resistant against, understanding if disease pressure is increasing, estimating if the potential final yield warrants the extra cost of spraying a fungicide, and finally asking if the crop is under stress that is non-disease related. Most importantly, these questions really emphasize the need to actively scout your fields to be able to answer the necessary questions accuractely.