NDSU Crop and Pest Report Summary
Posted: Nov 03 2020
The results of the 2020 NDSU Small Grains Integrated Pest Management (IPM) Survey have been completed, and available for producers and researchers to review. The purpose of the IPM is to detect the presence and population levels of disease and insect pests that are common in wheat grown in North Dakota. A total of nine scouts operated out of the various Research Extension Centers across North Dakota and surveyed a total of 707 wheat fields through the growing season. Three important areas for wheat in recent years have been Fusarium, bacterial leaf streak and the wheat stem sawfly. The maps for those three pests/diseases are shown below.
Fusarium head blight risk (scab) was moderate to high is some areas of the state, but for the most part much of the state saw low levels of disease pressure. NDSU IPM scouts visited 248 fields after the flowering stage and documented scab in just 8% of the fields. Where scab was observed, severity was low.
Bacterial leaf streak was one of the foliar diseases scouted for in 2020. It is most commonly observed after flag leaf emergence. In the fields scouted this year, after flag leaf emergence, bacterial leaf streak was observed in 27% of the fields, with the highest levels recorded across the Eastern half of the state.
Wheat stem sawfly was scouted from mid-June through late July in 2020. Sweep nets were used to collect adult sawflies. Of the fields surveyed, just 7% produced collections, but wheat stem sawflies were more common and widespread than in 2019, according to NDSU Extension. Sawflies were most prevalent across portions of northwest and north central North Dakota, and the entire southwest. NDSU experts caution that areas of the state where drought was more intense in 2020 should expect to see increased wheat stem sawfly survival for next year.
The complete listing of results of the 2020 IPM survey can be found at https://www.ag.ndsu.edu/ndipm/wheat. The site also provides the weekly updates from the past growing season. The North Dakota Wheat Commission will utilize these survey results in it’s annual research review meeting, to focus funding efforts on helping producers combat these issues, and help researchers continue to develop resistance, or management strategies to mitigate or eliminate crop impact.