Late-season spread of soybean rust now in 11 S.C. counties

Published: October 26, 2009

image by: Clemson University

BLACKVILLE — Soybean rust has been found in 11 South Carolina counties this year, with Aiken and Lee counties the most recent to show signs of the disease.

Rust has been found this year in Aiken, Bamberg, Barnwell, Berkeley, Calhoun, Colleton, Dorchester, Hampton, Horry, Lee and Orangeburg counties.

Cool, wet weather that is expected to move across the area in the coming days likely will help spread whatever rust is present, said John Mueller, Clemson University extension soybean pathologist at the Edisto Research and Education Center.

However, with fields in the latter stages of maturity, this late-season spread is not a threat to soybean crops, he said.

“We may have some premature defoliation in a few fields that were not treated with a fungicide, but it is too late for this to hurt all but the very latest maturing soybeans,” Mueller said.

Rust has been found on soybeans this year across the Southeast from Florida to Texas. The disease also made its way to Illinois, Indiana and Missouri, among other states.

Soybean rust — yellowish in appearance on plant leaves — is a disease that causes early maturation and severe loss of yield through premature foliation and decreased seed weight.

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