I visited the yield trials near Becker, Le Center, and New Ulm earlier this week. The barley has largely headed and about half the oat and spring wheat varieties have headed. Overall, and not unexpectedly, the spring wheat, barley, and oats are shorter than in most years. The first two yield components - the number of tillers per unit area and the number of spikelets per spike or panicle - are average to above average.
BYDV symptoms on the flag leaves of individual plants could be found in all three locations but the incidence was well below 1%. However, I could not find the vector, most likely English grain aphid or Bird cherry-oat aphid, in the canopy. Neither did I find any leaf, strips, or crown rust. I could find some tan spot in the lower canopy of the spring wheat and the start of net blotch on Pinnacle barley.
The risk models continue to show a relatively low risk of initial infections of leaf rust and the Septoria species and a moderate risk of tan spot across the state. The drier conditions in the south and the lower relative humidities across the whole state do not create enough leaf wetness periods at the right temperatures to allow infections to occur. Likewise, the risk of initial infections of Fusarium head blight remains low as well (despite my expectation that it was likely to increase this past week).
Enjoy your 4th of July weekend. A lot of the spring wheat seeded in the second week of May will reach anthesis next week. I plan to increase this small grains disease and pest update twice weekly starting next Tuesday. The immediate forecast looks very favorable for both the crop and the risk of Fusarium head blight as lower relative humidities continue to be forecasted. Nevertheless, I encourage you to ready your sprayers to spray fungicides at Feekes 10.51 as it feels like the weather forecasts have been erroneous more often lately.
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