The Crop Progress report from USDA paints an interesting picture across spring wheat country from Oregon to the Dakotas. And the magic word is "delayed." But team that with wetter-than-usual weather, and there's another word that may come to mind: disease.

"Everything is late in the Pacific Northwest and Idaho, and the reason is moisture," says Nate Anderson, technical sales specialist, Bayer. "We have too much of a good thing at the moment, and a lot of areas have had record precipitation from the first of October through April."

That wet weather has made it very difficult to plant spring wheat at higher elevations, too. Anderson, who talked with Western Farmer Stockman recently, shared that essentially, it's just a challenge getting into fields to plant spring wheat. What does that mean?

In answer to that question, Anderson turns his attention to winter wheat coming out of dormancy. "Winter wheat is showing, in a lot of cases, stripe rust infestations. There's a lot of fungicide going on with the herbicide timing in winter wheat," he notes.

He notes that producers will continue to make applications through the season to harvest since disease pressure is so high. Wet weather makes conditions just right for disease.

For spring wheat, it's likely that the best time to apply fungicide will be when herbicide goes down, too, and then there could be second or third sprays to keep the disease at bay. While some wheat varieties have adult resistance to stripe rust, early-season attacks can hit those crops hard.

The key there is to make sure you have an effective fungicide that includes more than one mode of action. One example Anderson cites is Absolute Max, which has two active ingredients – tebuconazole and trifloxystrobin. "The first has a curative action, and then you get protective benefits from both," he says. "That gives you good long-term control."

The key is getting multiple modes of action at work, which can also alleviate concerns with any diseases developing resistance.

Weather and weeds
Wet weather being experienced in this part of the West means only one thing — cheatgrass, which can be trouble in winter wheat. And of course broadleaf weeds can get a jump in fields where you want to plant spring wheat. And then there's the issue of wild oats, long a problem in wheat, both winter and spring.

Anderson recommends the Bayer product Husky for broadleaf control. For wild oat and cheatgrass control in winter wheat, Osprey and Olympus are recommended. Olympus can be used on spring wheat, but there's a concern with soil residual and plant-back restrictions. Best choice there is to talk to your agronomist about the best choice.

There are products — both post-patent and newer chemistries available — that can offer control without plant-back concerns.

A wet spring will challenge both planting and disease control. Scouting and planning remain critical tools for your operation.