Free Nematode Testing Through Dec. 2021

Nematode damage in Mississippi soybeans is often misdiagnosed as a nutrient deficiency or a disease issue, or worse, just ignored. But according to information in the White Paper titled “Soybean Yield Loss to Diseases in the Midsouthern US” on this website, parasitic nematodes that affect soybeans–i.e., soybean cyst, root knot, and reniform–are major contributors to soybean yield loss to pests in the Midsouth each year.

The MSU Extension Service Plant Diagnostic Lab is offering free nematode testing for Miss. soybean producers through Dec. 2021. This free testing will be for root-knot, reniform, and soybean cyst nematodes, the three nematode pests that can cause major economic losses to Mississippi soybeans if not controlled by recommended management practices.

Funding for the tests is provided by the United Soybean Board through the SCN Coalition, a group composed of public university scientists and Extension specialists and private agricultural company representatives.

Samples submitted for this free testing should be accompanied by the SCN sample submission form (click here or access through the Lab’s website–Pub. F1178).

This period of free testing through 2021 should be an enticement to sample fields that have exhibited signs of nematode damage to soybeans or will have soybeans following a crop that served as a host to a nematode species that will also negatively affect soybeans. Hopefully, producers who suspect they have nematode infestations in their fields will conduct sampling in the fall following harvest, which is the preferred sampling time. Instructions for proper field sampling can be found here.

Composed by Larry G. Heatherly, Aug. 2020, larryheatherly@bellsouth.net