The SCN Coalition recently wrapped up its 2020 survey that tracks the expansion of soybean cyst nematodes. State experts have been collecting the data since 2017 and shared those findings with the Coalition.
“They give up the information they have learned over the last three years, and then we add that to our database to create the map,” said Dr. Greg Tylka, nematologist for The SCN Coalition. “We do that in all the soybean-producing states in the U.S. as well as the soybean-producing provinces in Canada.”
Tylka said the 2020 results show numbers have increased.
“Surprisingly, between 2017 and 2020, there were 55 new counties recorded in 11 different U.S. states, including Michigan,” he said.
New York state reported the biggest expansion of new counties, coming in at 29. Yield losses can steadily increase if SCN is left untreated. Tylka said a new form of resistance will be available to growers this planting season.
“It’s two new varieties that are the same genetics, just branded under two different names—one from Northrup King and the other from Golden Harvest,” he said. “It has a set of genes from a breeding line called PI89772. We actually had it in some field plots in Iowa in 2020.”
Tylka said when the ground thaws and drains enough in the spring to obtain a soil sample, you can ask your local lab to analyze it. To learn more about The SCN Coalition and their video series “Let’s Talk Todes,” visit their website, thescncoalition.com.
