Video: Common Smut in Corn: How to Identify and Manage
In this video, Pioneer Field Agronomist Rex Brandon shows how to identify common smut in your corn fields, what smut is, and how it can be managed. Common smut is a fungus that can be found anywhere corn is grown. It can survive in the soil over winter and occurs more in fields with high nitrogen and high organic matter. Sand blasting from wind, or anything that can break down the leaf cells can allow smut to thrive. Good plant health and managing the amount of nitrogen applied to the corn can help manage and prevent common smut from propagating. Keeping corn healthy, injury free, and preventing stress can also help. Insect feeding is another entry point for common smut, so keeping insects off your corn can also help prevent it. Hybrid selection also plays a role, if you have high historical common smut pressure, consider selecting a hybrid that has higher tolerance for common smut.