Wheat tour finds disease

Smith Center
Winter wheat yield prospects in northern Kansas were mixed compared to last year’s drought-hit crop, with plants struggling to overcome the effects of dry weather earlier in the growing season, scouts on an annual crop tour said on Tuesday.
Yield-robbing diseases, particularly stripe rust, were apparent in fields in north-central Kansas. Scouts on one route of the Wheat Quality Council’s tour found light to moderate stripe rust in three of the first five fields checked. Since wet conditions tend to help diseases spread, pressure on yields may increase in some areas after heavy rains fell Monday parts of Kansas, the top US winter wheat producer. The diseases may offset the moisture’s benefits.
“The rain is definitely going to benefit the crop, but we are seeing a lot of variability. The high-end yield potential isn’t there,” said Justin Gilpin, chief executive of the Kansas Wheat Commission, who is on the tour.