Diseases are beginning to show up in West Texas peanut fields.

“We are beginning to find early leaf spot in area peanut fields, as we have anticipated for a couple of weeks,” says Scott A Russell, Texas AgriLife integrated pest management specialist for Terry and Yoakum Counties.

“The infestations are not widespread and not severe at present. However, our fungicides are generally preventative, and protect uninfected leaf surfaces; there is little curative action with most fungicides,” Russell said. “I have also examined plants from one field with symptoms of pod rot on pegs and pods.”

He said , Dr. Terry Wheeler isolated Rhizoctonia. from symptomatic pods collected recently in a large plot research field. “This infestation represented less than 1 percent of the field.”

He said for both foliar and soil borne pathogens, growers should examine several locations per field to get an idea of the overall infestation rate in a particular field.

“Dr. Jason Woodward provided a good discussion of the potential diseases and treatments available in the recent Peanut Progress newsletter. Also the Texas Peanut Production Guide lists management options and pathogens controlled by assorted fungicides.”