Fungicide on wheat?

**TASFarms** · Jul 10, 2017, 08:05

Hope it's going to be cool enough when the humidity is up. Kinda sucks when it's been very dry and the timing of this rain system. Not much for midge so far

**farmaholic** · Jul 10, 2017, 08:24

I think I need a sabbatical from posting but would like to comment on this topic.

The inoculum may be "present" here but I would bet the farm the ****ing stuff is laying there "dormant"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Soil surface is really dry....how the hell is fusarium going to produce spores under the conditions we're experiencing here. The canopy is never wet, IF there is dew, and the very little that there would be is restricted to the upper most part of the canopy and is burnt off early in the day!!!

How the hell is schlerotinia apothecia ever supposed to establish under the same environmental conditions?

When there's people around you spraying and I choose not to based on the conditions on my farm, I start to question my reasoning. I guess I will know in fall. Wheat is basically past the stage of application anyway. Canola much the same.... also still only see the rows of the main stem flowering,,,, branches are there but this crop is not a "sea of yellow" and its been flowering long enough it should be.

This might be the year, that on this crop, we might make a bit more money by not spending any more!!!

**farming101** · Jul 10, 2017, 08:32

I could be easily talked out of spraying. We'll see. Where's Tweety?

**Rareearth** · Jul 10, 2017, 08:41

Diseases, fungus are the quite different for the various crops. I believe you are correct they all need humidity to grow and develop.
Crop health benefits have been demonstrated, and effective, ie headline on cabbage canola, lentil at flower, flag in barley durum etc.

I think there is at a minimum a break even for the cost and application. Is this then the cheapest best ROI insurance a farmer has?

Quality and crop volumes during high and low price markets make the sales so much easier, at premium prices. Freight cost can be substantially lower, no USA distance marketing.

**farmaholic** · Jul 10, 2017, 08:46

I've refuse to spend any time at the local Chem Retailers.....I don't want to listen to the rhetoric or defend my position. Also I respect their business, and me ranting about not spraying because of the environmental conditions is not good for their business!

Base your decisions on what you see on your side of the fence.

Follow your ADGENDA, not the Chem Retailer's or your neighbor's!

**farmaholic** · Jul 10, 2017, 08:53

Think about these things:
Best Management Practice
Integrated Pest Management
Sound Agronomic and Financial decisions....

They are claiming we are using fungicides too indiscriminately and the Strobilurins are suscetible to resistance issues. Is sparying when its unnecessary a "use it and lose it" scenario?

**bucket** · Jul 10, 2017, 10:03

Best management practices also require best weather .....I know I am losing more to this weather than all the juice I can put on the crop......

Is the price rising enough to justify it....maybe.....but if it's break even when all costs are considered. ......I can't be forced to ride that horse again....

I am planning for next year....again.

But I am very optimistic at this point for 2018.....

2017 is history.....

**seabass** · Jul 10, 2017, 15:41

In the twenty years we been doing it only three havent paid and one was a breakeven. I will do it just for peace of mind. I hate having bushels of garbage. But we usually have lots of humidity and rains more than not except the years it didnt pay.

**sumdumguy** · Jul 10, 2017, 18:52

No comment on fungicide but you should see the worms chomping on our canola. These little red under soil bugs turned into millions-no trillions and kazillions of hunry army worms. Never saw anything like that. Those poor canola, persecuted, frozen, roasted, dying of thirst.

Fungicide on wheat?