Project Overview

Reports

Commodities

• Agronomic: sunflower

Target Pests

Practices

• Pest Management: biological control, chemical control, cultural control, disease vectors, economic threshold, genetic resistance, host resistance, monitoring/scouting, other, pesticide application timing, pesticide resistance management, pesticides, precision pesticide use, prevention

• Crop Production: crop rotation, cropping systems, fertilizers, nutrient management

• Production Systems: agroecosystems

Approximately 85 to 90% of the 1.6 M acres of sunflower in the U.S. are planted in the North Central States. According to the National Sunflower Association (NSA), diseases are the most significant biological yield-limiting factor for sunflower production, yet few pathologists work on sunflower and until recently, limited Extension materials on sunflower diseases were available. As a consequence, disease identification and management consistently have been very challenging and some growers resort to a ‘spray and pray’ approach to disease management. To address this problem, the Sunflower Pathology Working Group (SPWG) was formed with support from the North Central IPM Center. The mission of the SPWG is to develop Extension materials, programs and events in multiple sunflower production regions that will help growers and stakeholders identify diseases and other pests as well as facilitate their ability to use IPM. For FY2023, we designed three objectives, (1) Maximize skills, collaborations and communications to improve sunflower disease identification, management and IPM, (2) Facilitate an increase in speed and accuracy of sunflower disease identification by plant diagnosticians and practitioners, and (3) Increase stakeholder engagement through participation in activities organized by SPWG that demonstrates advances in sunflower disease management and IPM to growers. For objective 1, we will continue to optimize the communication efforts and impact of SPWG.  This will include individual and team assessments from the VIA Institute on Character for each of the seven members (also as part of our Diversity, Equity, Inclusivity, and Accessibility plan).  For objective 2, we plan to complete one APS Plant Health Progress Diagnostic guide tentatively titled “Sunflower Head Rots –Rhizopus, Sclerotinia and minor diseases” to provide the plant disease diagnosticians and other professionals with tools to diagnose sunflower head diseases. Additionally, we will publish one press article in the NSA’s The Sunflower magazine, tentatively titled ‘Understanding head rots’ for growers.  For Objective 3, with potential funding (submission of a CARE proposal) from the NSA and USDA-AFRI, we plan to increase farmer and stakeholder engagement in Extension activities such as coordinated demonstration plots and events in Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The anticipated overall outcome of this proposal is that growers learn up-to-date disease diagnosis, identify emerging pests and pest resistance management, so that their IPM knowledge increases, and their IPM management is more effective, efficient and sustainable. To accomplish all the proposed objectives, we anticipate partnering with plant health practitioners (including those from the underserved communities) and the NSA. Ultimately, we believe our impact will be to eliminate the ‘spray and pray’ approach to sunflower disease management and replace it with an IPM approach. This proposal is designed to address priorities within NCIPMC signature programs; to support and promote IPM practices that will improve crop system sustainability by increasing farm profitability and reducing environmental impacts using IPM practices, as well as developing systems that can rapidly identify new re-emerging or resistant pests and minimize their impact.  We also anticipate impacts of increasing usage of IPM at a state, regional, national or international scale.

1) Maximize skills, collaborations and communications to improve sunflower disease identification, management and IPM, 2) Facilitate an increase in speed and accuracy of sunflower disease identification by plant diagnosticians and practitioners, 3) Increase stakeholder engagement through participation in activities organized by SPWG that demonstrates advances in sunflower disease management and IPM to growers.