Warm April weather in North Mississippi provides great growing conditions for sweetpotato plant beds. A few days near the 80s will have sweetpotato shoots pushing up the black plastic mulch that has been covering them since March. However, warm and humid conditions underneath plastic mulch can also provide an ideal environment for Southern blight, a disease . . . → Read More: Southern Blight and Sweetpotato Plant Beds
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 Recently several groups in Mississippi came together and developed then adopted a set of Cooperative Standards for row crop farmers and beekeepers in an effort to increase awareness of pollinator’s and create an environment where each could coexist while minimizing any adverse conditions to either operation. As a part of that program the “Bee Aware” flag was . . . → Read More: “Bee Aware” Flags Ready for Distribution Each year some sweetpotato scurf or “soil-stain” is reported. However, this year it would appear that the disease has been more prevalent than normal in some fields. Scurf is caused by a soil-dwelling fungus, Monilochaetes infuscans, and results in darkened, discolored skin (Figure 1). The affected portion of the root can range from a small patch . . . → Read More: Sweetpotatoes and Scurf The 3rd annual joint MEA/MAPPAN/MWSS annual meeting will be held next week at the Bost Extension Building in Starkville, MS next week. The dates of the meeting are Monday and Tuesday October 21-22. We have a very informative and exciting program planned for the meeting. The meeting will kick off Monday afternoon with a Row Crop . . . → Read More: Joint MEA/MAPPAN/MWSS Annual Meeting and Roundtable Discussion Last week’s harvest saw reports of “red potatoes” appearing in sweetpotato fields. There was speculation that the light-orange-skinned ‘Beauregard’ had altered its genetic make-up to the point that it had changed its skin color at multiple locations within the same field. While genetic mutations do occur in sweetpotato, there is a far more likely explanation. As . . . → Read More: “Why are there red potatoes in my field?” This week marked the first reported appearances of sugarcane beetles in sweetpotato fields in Mississippi for the 2013 growing season. The sugarcane beetle is a relatively new pest of sweetpotato in Mississippi. However, in recent years, heavy sugarcane beetle populations have caused significant losses for some growers in Louisiana, as roots with sugarcane beetle damage are . . . → Read More: Sugarcane Beetle Reported in Sweetpotato. Yields for most Mississippi sweetpotato growers are anticipated to be on par with expectations. However, growers not content with their yields should take a critical look at the vines that ride up the front of the digger- each one tells a story. Here are three non-pest related contributors to insufficient yield: Planting depth The first thing I look . . . → Read More: A Critical Look at Sweetpotato Yield Cadre (active ingredient= imazapic) is an ALS-inhibiting herbicide registered for use in peanut. The persistence of the herbicide, which has an average half-life of 120 days, requires growers pay particular attention to the herbicide’s rotational restrictions. Fortunately, Cadre carryover injury to sweetpotato has been rare in 2013. I recently found one field in Chickasaw County with . . . → Read More: Imazapic/Cadre Carryover Symptoms in Sweetpotato PONTOTOC – Sweetpotato growers, crop consultants and other agricultural professionals can learn about recent weed, insect and disease control research during an upcoming field day. Researchers and specialists with Mississippi State University’s Extension Service and the Mississippi Agricultural and Forestry Experiment station will host the event Aug. 2 2 at the Pontotoc Ridge-Flatwoods Branch Experiment Station located at . . . → Read More: Mississippi Sweetpotato Field Day Scheduled for Tomorrow- August 22nd Earlier this week I received a photo via text. The photo showed white-leafed cocklebur plants in a sweetpotato field in Chickasaw County. The sender was curious as to what would cause this. Command (active ingredient: clomazone) is the most frequently used herbicide in Mississippi sweetpotato production. It is typically applied within 48 hours after transplanting in May . . . → Read More: Command Injury Symptoms Reemerge in Sweetpotato Fields |
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