Syngenta Thrive

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Agriculture, which contributes roughly $1.5 trillion to the U.S. economy, should have policies in place that not only protects farmers, natural resources and consumers, but also ensures a safe and secure food supply for the world.

Women like Jasmine Scott, government and sustainability affairs lead at Syngenta, play essential roles in shaping and bringing that policy to life. “I’m excited to be a part of celebrating the unique contributions that women make to advancing agriculture during the International Year of the Woman Farmer,” she says. “We’ve been known as contributors, but now we’re acknowledging women as critical decision-makers and leaders. Our spirit, energy, perspectives, and experiences bring a level of innovation for everyone to enjoy.”

From Farm Roots to Ag Policy

Scott grew up on her grandparents’ tobacco farm near the small rural town of Madison, North Carolina. By modeling a strong work ethic, working with integrity, and producing quality crops, her grandparents — especially her grandmother — inspired and prepared Scott to take a seat at the agricultural policy table.

“I think of my work today as a love letter to their legacy,” she says. “I constantly consider how the policies and priorities we are hoping to advance would serve my grandparents and the people I grew up with in rural America.”

Scott earned a degree in agricultural education with a business concentration from North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University. After graduation, she worked for the USDA, interned with Syngenta and explored other industries.

“During my journey after graduating from college, I bounced around between working full-time and earning my master’s degree,” Scott says. “I discovered, after having tried a number of things, that agriculture was where I belonged, and I found my way back to the industry.”

To continue equipping herself to benefit the industry, Scott is pursuing a doctorate in public administration and policy at Virginia Tech.

How Ag Policy and Sustainability Support Long-Term Success

At Syngenta, Scott positions the company — and the industry — for success through her work on the sustainability team. Scott and her colleagues ensure growers have the resources and tools they need to prioritize soil health and adopt regenerative practices.

“A few years ago, we tapped a partner to conduct a study on women producers,” she says. “We learned that women tend to prioritize sustainability, environmental health, succession planning, and the impact their decisions have on their operations. That reveals a lot about the spirit women bring to agriculture, beginning with the end in mind. We want to leave things better than we found them.”

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Women tend to prioritize sustainability, environmental health, succession planning, and the impact their decisions have on their operations. That reveals a lot about the spirit women bring to agriculture, beginning with the end in mind.

Jasmine Scott Government and Sustainability Affairs Lead at Syngenta

As part of the public affairs function, Scott often engages with federal lawmakers on the practical role Syngenta’s solutions play in helping American growers meet current and emerging challenges.

“Our team plays a key role in helping policymakers understand the realities growers face,” she says. “With time and understanding, we can help protect the conditions that allow our business to operate effectively and preserve growers’ access to solutions they need.”

Women Breaking Barriers in Ag Policy

Scott values connecting with other women who are shaping the future of agricultural policy, from members of Congress to industry association leaders and lobbyists.

Pew Research reports that 28% of the members of the 119th U.S. Congress are women. The agriculture committees reflect that. Women hold 14 of the 53 seats in the House Committee on Agriculture. Six of the 23 members of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry are also women.

Additionally, a McKinsey & Company 2025 report shows that women in many top ag-focused lobbyist firms comprise between one-third and one-half of the staff team engaging with industry leaders and lawmakers.

Scott is grateful for their work and leadership.

“I think I’m a product of many barriers being broken,” she says. “I now operate in a space where it’s the norm to connect with a member of Congress who is a woman or a leader at Syngenta who is a woman. I’m a beneficiary of many women whose efforts have made my life and work easier.”

Looking to the future, Scott is impressed with the next generation of women joining the industry.

“Over the past three years, I have connected with college students at a Women in Agribusiness Summit, and they blew me away,” she says. “They were professional, humble, and communicative-all qualities you would hope to find in a future colleague or friend.”

Scott continues, “I’m excited for these young women to start contributing to the industry because they are going to do amazing things. I cannot wait to start working alongside them!”

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When wet weather delays harvest, grain moisture becomes a leading concern — and for good reason. Too much moisture can drive up the potential for mold and the costs of drying and storing grain, while driving down marketability and profits. But moisture isn’t the whole story.

Two loads of corn harvested at the same moisture level can have very different outcomes. One may store successfully for months when dried and monitored properly. The other may begin deteriorating at an accelerated pace because of factors beyond moisture.

That’s why grain condition deserves as much attention as moisture content when you’re making harvest and storage decisions.

Not All Corn Is Created Equal

Imagine two fields of corn are ready for harvest. The first field contains healthy plants with good stalk integrity, minimal kernel damage and no obvious ear mold. The second field contains weakened stalks, visible mold and kernels that have weathered through repeated wetting and drying cycles.

Even though both fields test 20% moisture, their storage performance after drying can differ greatly. The grain from the more compromised field may require much closer management because mold, damaged kernels and lower grain quality can shorten storage life.

Iowa State University Extension researchers confirm that field molds, broken kernels and foreign material create conditions that accelerate mold and disease development, while reducing allowable storage time. Therefore, scouting fields for these conditions is an important preharvest step.

What to Look for Before Harvest

Before harvest, look for these warning signs that may affect grain storage potential:

  • Weak stalks or increased lodging risk
  • Visible ear molds in corn
  • Weathered or discolored grain
  • Low test weight in corn
  • Significant kernel damage
  • Excess foreign material

Fields showing these signs may warrant earlier harvest, even if they aren’t the driest fields on the farm.

The Hidden Cost of Waiting

Many harvest decisions come down to economics. Drying costs money. Fuel costs money. Harvesting wetter grain can slow operations. But waiting also has a cost.

Warm, wet grain begins using storage life immediately after harvest. Iowa State Extension notes that even short periods of holding wet corn before drying can significantly reduce storability and increase the likelihood of storage problems later.

The longer compromised grain remains warm and wet, the less margin for error you may have once it enters storage. For grain already affected by mold, weather damage or other quality concerns, prompt drying and cooling can be especially important.

Why Field Mold Matters

Not every mold creates the same level of concern, but visible mold should never be ignored.

In corn, certain ear-rotting fungi can produce mycotoxins. Others primarily affect grain quality and storability. Iowa State Extension notes that moldy grain generally has a shorter storage life than sound grain, even when moisture levels are similar.

Fields showing mold development should be evaluated carefully before harvest. Grain from those fields may benefit from separate handling, additional monitoring or earlier marketing, depending on the severity of the issue.

Storage Life Is a Combination of Factors

Think of storage life as a combination of several factors:

  • Moisture content
  • Grain temperature
  • Mold presence
  • Kernel damage
  • Test weight
  • Foreign material
  • Airflow and aeration

No single factor tells the entire story. Take foreign materials, for example. During a difficult harvest, grain often enters storage with more broken kernels, cob pieces and plant material than usual. Those materials can create hot spots, restrict airflow and provide an environment where mold develops more quickly. Generally, the cleaner the grain going into the bin, the easier it is to manage over time.

But grain quality doesn’t stop changing once it reaches the bin. Proper cleaning, coring and aeration can help improve storage conditions and reduce risk. That’s why moisture should be treated as a starting point rather than the only measurement that matters.

Four Questions To Ask Before Putting Grain Into the Bin

As harvest progresses, consider asking:

  1. What was the crop’s condition before harvest? Fields with stalk deterioration, lodging or mold may require more attention than moisture readings alone suggest.
  2. How much damage occurred during harvest? Check grain samples regularly and adjust combine settings as conditions change.
  3. Will this grain be sold soon or stored long term? Grain destined for longer storage generally warrants tighter management of moisture, temperature and grain quality.
  4. Is the storage plan realistic? Drying capacity, aeration capability and available bin space all influence how successfully high-moisture grain can be managed.

The most effective harvest decisions often come from understanding the whole picture. This fall, don’t just ask, “How wet is this grain?” Also ask, “How well will this grain keep?”

The answer may help you make better decisions about harvest priority, storage management and protecting grain quality long after the combine leaves the field.

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Soybean cyst nematode (SCN) may be the best-known nematode species, but it may not be the only one costing you yield. Other species like root-knot (RKN), root lesion (RLN) and reniform nematode cause yield loss across soybean-production regions. Fortunately, there are several ways you can manage these threats and protect your soybean yield.

Nematode Damage Adds Stress to Crops

Plant-parasitic nematodes like SCN and RKN need a living host to survive; and more than one species can infest a soybean field, sometimes reducing yield without causing visible symptoms.

Much like soil-borne diseases, plant-parasitic nematodes can be spread numerous ways to new fields where they infect plant roots, feed and reproduce. Their feeding limits water and nutrient uptake, reduces nodulation, and slows root development, adding even more stress to the plant. The impact of species like RLN and reniform nematode can extend beyond soybean yield and damage other crops in your rotation.

Tips to Manage Nematodes in Soybeans

Some nematode species reproduce quickly, completing multiple generations in a single growing season. While you can’t eliminate nematodes entirely, these management strategies can help keep nematode populations in check and reduce their impact on your yield:

  • Resistant soybean varieties: One of the most widely used management tools, resistant soybean varieties limit nematode reproduction. Keep in mind that not all varieties are effective against all species. Similar to disease, nematodes can adapt when the same resistance source is used repeatedly, so rotating different sources of resistance helps protect these tools’ long-term effectiveness in your fields.
  • Crop rotation: Rotating with nonhost crops is one of the most effective management strategies for reducing nematode population levels. Since hosts vary by nematode species, the effectiveness of crop rotation depends on which nematode is present in your field. For example, RLN’s wide host range means crops like corn or wheat could sustain or even increase population densities.
  • Seed treatments: By limiting nematode reproduction, Victrato® seed treatment can deliver early-season soybean protection from multiple nematode species. Powered by TYMIRIUM® technology, Victrato works to protect soybeans from nematode eggs, juveniles and adults, including SCN, RKN, RLN, reniform and lance nematodes.

No matter the species or population level in your field, employing as many of these nematode management practices as possible is recommended. A post-harvest soil test can help guide your long-term management decisions and track whether your plan is working.

How to Take a Soil Sample for Nematode Management

Soil testing is the most reliable way to monitor, identify and manage soybean nematodes. Nematode populations are typically highest at or before harvest, making this an ideal time to collect soil samples. This gives you enough time to estimate potential population levels for the next season and adjust any management decisions if needed.

The better your soil sample, the clearer your results will be. Use these steps to get the most accurate count:

  1. Use a probe to collect soil cores in the root zone that are 6 to 8 inches deep.
  2. Collect 15 to 20 samples in a zigzag or “W” pattern for every 20 acres.
  3. Sample fields separately based on wet or dry areas, soil type, or cropping history.
  4. Mix the cores well in a bucket, put the mixed soil into a sample bag, and send it to your local nematode testing lab. Be sure to request a comprehensive nematode evaluation, as there may be more than one species.

While yearly sampling isn’t necessary, testing fields every two to three soybean crops can help you track nematode population numbers and confirm whether your management strategies are working. Take note of the longer-term trend over the last three to five samples.

National Nematode Day

Nematodes may be difficult to spot, but their impact on yield can be significant. To raise awareness of these hidden yield threats, our partners at The SCN Coalition named the first Monday of October as National Nematode Day, encouraging growers to soil test, identify and take a proactive approach to soybean nematode management.

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Thrips and pepper weevils are unwanted guests on any farm, but they pose a special threat to peppers and tomatoes. These insects can directly reduce marketable yield potential through feeding damage and can vector diseases.

Adult thrips are 1.5 mm in length and are pale to light brown in color. According to University of Florida Extension, thrips cause damage to pepper and tomato plants by feeding, which impacts plant growth, deforms flowers and scars fruit, ultimately impacting marketable yield potential. Thrips migrate from host to host throughout the year with the potential for multiple generations per season.

Western flower thrips, often found in pepper fields, are the most efficient vector of tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV). Larvae can be found in flowers and on fruits, and adults prefer to hide in the spaces between the fruit stems and leaves.

Pepper weevils are pear-shaped beetles that are about 3 mm in length with dark scales and long snouts. Adult females bore into fruit buds and lay eggs. Larvae are grayish c-shaped grubs that enter pepper pods to feed after hatching. Virginia Cooperative Extension states that adult pepper weevils damage foliage and blossom buds; larvae feed only on the fruit buds and pods. Internal damage caused by larvae feeding can cause deformed fruit or premature dropping.

A combination of cultural practices and powerful insecticides can help prevent and control thrips and pepper weevils. Keeping fields and greenhouses free of weeds, fallen leaf litter and debris removes an alternate host for thrips. If you experienced infestations in previous seasons, deep plowing in early spring can destroy ingested weeds and plant material from last season. In greenhouses, placing fine mesh screens over fans and other vents can help prevent infestations. Destroying dropped and deformed fruit can help kill developing pepper weevil larvae or pupae.

Incipio™ insecticide is a powerful tool that can help free the farm from thrips and pepper weevils. Incipio is powered by PLINAZOLIN® technology and offers long-lasting, broad-spectrum control so you can stress less about insect pests during the season.

A bar chart shows improved control of Western flower thrips in tomatoes with Incipio insecticide compared to an untreated check and alternative products.
In a trial testing the average number of adult Western flower thrips on tomato, tomatoes treated with Incipio had less adults per 5 plants than untreated tomatoes. Trial: USWQ0I1022021. 6, 13 and 20 days after last application. CA, 2021.

By controlling thrips, pepper weevils and other insect pests, Incipio helps manage the spread of TWSV. With no known cross-resistance, its novel mode of action in IRAC Group 30 helps growers manage resistance. This is especially important for growers dealing with thrips because thrips populations developed resistance to several available insecticides.

A bar chart shows reduced pepper weevil damage in pepper crops with Incipio insecticide compared to an untreated check and alternative products.
In a trial testing the efficacy of insecticides against pepper weevil, plants treated with Incipio had fewer fruit infested with pepper weevil than untreated plants and alternative products. Trial: USVN013092020. FL, 2020.

To learn more about controlling vegetable pests and the advantages of Incipio insecticide, reach out to your local Syngenta representative.

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Every input deserves scrutiny in today’s farm economy.

From seed and fertilizer to fuel and crop protection, growers are evaluating every line item to protect margins. According to Jeremy Sharp, corn herbicide product lead at Syngenta, that’s exactly what they should be doing.

“Growers should know what’s going into each acre,” Sharp says. “But when evaluating herbicides, the question isn’t about which product costs less but rather what will this decision ultimately cost me by the end of the season?”

It’s easy to compare purchase prices, but many of the costs associated with crop protection don’t appear on an invoice. “Purchase price is one part of the equation, but it’s not the whole equation,” Sharp says.

The Cheapest Option Isn’t Always the Lowest-Cost Option

Many herbicide decisions begin with two comparisons: active ingredients (A.I.) and cost per acre.

Those are important considerations, but they don’t tell the entire story, according to Jeremy Fowler, Ph.D., group leader of formulation development at Syngenta.

“Depending on the formulation, you can have dozens of ingredients beyond the active ingredients and those pieces create a very complex formulation package that’s designed to not only give you outstanding efficacy in the final product itself, but stability over a wide range of conditions,” Fowler says.

Those additional formulation components may include emulsifiers, stabilizers, pH buffering systems, antifoam agents and other ingredients designed to help products remain stable, compatible and effective under real-world conditions.

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When evaluating herbicides, the question isn’t about which product costs less, but rather what will this decision ultimately cost me by the end of the season?

Jeremy Sharp Corn Herbicide Product Lead at Syngenta

Sharp sees the same issue from a grower’s perspective.

“The active ingredient is part of the calculation, but it isn’t the only calculation,” he says. Understanding that difference becomes important when products reach the tank and the field.

Hidden Cost #1: Tank-Mix Problems

Today’s herbicide programs often require multiple products, adjuvants and tank-mix partners. When ingredients are not designed to work together, problems can develop quickly. Fowler notes that compatibility is one of the key challenges formulation scientists work to solve long before a product reaches the marketplace.

“The big difference, and where generic herbicides may have different levels of time and resources invested, is to make sure that all ingredients are compatible in the formulated product,” Fowler says. “Growers can’t afford surprises.”

Sharp has seen those surprises with some generic herbicides firsthand. “I’ve seen way too many tanks turn to pancake batter on us,” he says.

Products that settle, crystallize, separate or become too thick to pump can create immediate challenges. In some situations, the mixture can be recovered. Even when a mixture appears usable again, another concern remains. “Am I getting too much A.I. in one place and not enough somewhere else? And then suddenly I’ve got skips or crop response in the field?” Sharp says.

Hidden Cost #2: Equipment Downtime

A problem in the tank often becomes a problem in the sprayer.

Settled material can clog screens, jets and pumps. Crystallization can create cleanup challenges. Equipment may sit idle while operators troubleshoot compatibility issues during critical application windows.

Sharp has spent years helping diagnose those situations and understands the impact on operations. “That is downtime. And that is very, very bad news for the person that’s got to deal with that,” he says. “I’ve had to help clean many tanks where DIY mixes went south. That’s not a good day.”

The hidden cost is not simply the cleanup. It’s the lost opportunity to spray while conditions are favorable. When application windows are measured in days rather than weeks, even minor delays can have consequences.

Hidden Cost #3: Weed Escapes and Rescue Applications

Tank-mix issues don’t always reveal themselves immediately.

Sometimes the evidence appears weeks later as weed escapes or inconsistent control across the field. Sharp explains that uneven distribution of active ingredients can create areas where weeds receive less than intended rates. “It’ll look just like skips,” he says. In those situations, growers often face an additional expense in the form of a rescue application.

“If you run into a scenario where you have less weed control and it’s not working the way you would expect, you’ll need to go back in with a potentially costly rescue application,” Sharp says.

That cost can include:

  • Additional chemistry
  • Fuel
  • Labor
  • Equipment wear
  • Another trip across the field
  • Continued weed competition for this season and next

What initially looked like a lower-cost choice can quickly become far more expensive.

Hidden Cost #4: Going It Alone

One of the easiest costs to overlook is support.

When a product doesn’t perform as expected, growers need answers quickly.

According to Fowler, that support network is one of the major differences between branded products and many generic alternatives.

“Our customer support center has access to global expertise and responds directly to suppliers, distributors and growers. We aim to ensure that their experience is the best they can get,” he says.

Sharp agrees.

“That’s why 1-866-SYNGENTA exists, so you can have dedicated U.S.-based support beyond the sale of the product,” he says. Whether the question involves performance, compatibility or application issues, growers have access to technical and agronomic resources after the product leaves the retailer.

What You’re Really Buying

When growers purchase a branded herbicide, they’re buying more than the active ingredients listed on the label. According to Fowler, formulation development requires significant time and scientific investment.

“Beyond the time spent to discover and determine if a new herbicide molecule can come to market, we spend at least two years testing a wide range of scenarios for compatibility and performance,” he says. “The longer timeline for development allows us to spend more time doing more experiments, refining stability criteria and checking a wide range of different conditions over an extended period of time.”

The goal is simple: Help products perform consistently and predictably under a wide range of conditions. “Any additional ingredients in our products are not simply fillers,” Fowler says. “They are carefully selected formulation components intended to improve stability, reliability and performance.”

Sharp believes that investment ultimately benefits growers. “When you stick to a formulated, branded product from Syngenta, we’ve worked through all of that for you,” he says.

Four Questions to Ask Before Choosing a Herbicide

Before selecting a herbicide primarily on purchase price, consider asking:

1. What is included beyond the active ingredients?

Formulation technology, stability systems, compatibility work and application testing may influence performance.

2. What additional products or management will this program require?

Consider surfactants, conditioners, compatibility agents and any other inputs needed to keep products working together.

3. What happens if performance falls short?

Think about the costs of downtime, weed escapes and rescue treatments.

4. Who stands behind the product?

Evaluate the agronomic, technical and customer support resources available after purchase.

Ask the Real Cost

In a tight-margin environment, scrutinizing every input makes sense. The next time two herbicides appear similar on paper, look beyond the active ingredients and the price per acre.

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There are plenty of variables you can manage throughout the growing season, but the weather isn’t one of them.

Whether it’s extreme heat, hail, derechos or drought, severe weather can threaten soybean yield at nearly every growth stage. While no one can prevent extreme conditions, the management decisions you make before and after a weather event can play a major role in minimizing losses and protecting yield potential.

When Weather Takes a Toll

Soybeans are resilient, but every type of severe weather can take a bite out of yield. How much yield is affected depends on the type of stress and when it occurs.

University of Wisconsin-Madison experts say this is one of the state’s warmest growing seasons, and the same goes for much of the Midwest. Extreme heat and drought can delay canopy closure, trigger flower and pod abortion, and reduce seed fill. At the other end of the forecast, excess rain, flooding or derechos can increase disease pressure, delay soybean development, and contribute to soil compaction.

Growth stage matters too. Some soybean fields can recover from early-season stress, especially if favorable growing conditions return. However, stress occurring during the reproductive stages could potentially have larger yield consequences. When multiple weather challenges stack up, your bottom line can take an even bigger hit.

The Unseen Impacts

Immediate damage like broken soybean stems after a severe weather event may be easy to spot at first, but some of the biggest yield threats develop days or even weeks later.

Prolonged wet weather can leave fields with saturated soil, creating optimal conditions for disease, including Phytophthora root and stem rot and white mold. Flooding can lead to root suffocation and soil compaction, limiting the plant’s growth even after fields dry.

Assess Before You Act

When the weather turns, every management decision matters. While it’s important to evaluate fields carefully, it’s just as important to give your crop the chance to recover on its own before taking major action.

Especially for severe weather like hail, University of Nebraska-Lincoln experts say to wait seven to 10 days before making significant changes. Giving the crop a waiting period after a storm provides the chance for the soybeans to recover before acting on decisions. The last thing you want to do is overcorrect and add unnecessary inputs without improving your end-of-season outcome.

Protect Yield Potential

Once the weather clears, your focus should shift to protecting remaining soybean yield potential. Replanting may not be a practical option for your operation, so removing any additional stressors is key to helping your crop finish the season as strong as possible.

Continue scouting throughout the season in case signs of disease, insect activity and weed pressure pop up. Track university and extension updates for any pest pressure alerts or response recommendations. Identifying these issues early can help prevent a weather-related setback from becoming a larger problem later in the season.

Looking ahead, consider whether your current seed selection aligns with the weather challenges your operation faces most often, as some soybean varieties handle specific stressors better than others. Work with a trusted agronomist or your local Syngenta sales representative to fine-tune any management strategies for this season and beyond.

Bottom line: Weather may be unpredictable, but informed management decisions can help you protect soybean yield potential and position fields for success, no matter what the forecast brings.

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The warm, wet weather that gets corn off to a good start can also give way to disease pressure and root stress. In 2025, these conditions in the Corn Belt combined with nutrient-rich soil also led to another threat: rapid growth syndrome (RGS).

This syndrome, typically preceded by a cool weather period, causes sudden, vigorous growth that can lead to the crop’s inner leaves growing faster than the outer whorl leaves can unfurl. The result is often a high incidence of wrapped tassels — mature tassels still wrapped in the stalk’s upper leaves, which can trap pollen inside.

In most cases, the tassel eventually emerges, with pale inner leaves greening up shortly after sun exposure. But delayed pollen shed due to wrapped tassels can disrupt silk-pollen synchrony, leaving blank spots on the cob or unpollinated kernels.

Preventing Wrapped Tassels

While the urge to unwrap the tassel may be tempting, manual field intervention is not the answer. Tearing or manipulating the whorl can snap leaves, opening the door to pathogens just as disease pressure is ramping up.

A better path forward is more informed hybrid selection. Some corn hybrids seem to be more susceptible to tassel wrapping than others, but agronomists note the tendency is not brand specific. Hybrids bred for an upright leaf structure to maximize light-capture and planting density have a propensity to wrap. Because their leaves grow up rather than out, they can readily constrict the topmost whorl, catching the tassel as it tries to push through.

Hybrids with larger flag leaves or single-spike tassels are also more likely to get stuck during emergence. In contrast, open-pollinated varieties’ high genetic variability allows canopy shape and flowering windows to stagger naturally, making a field-wide, tassel-wrap takeover highly unlikely.

Splitting the planter between two high-performing hybrids across the rows, with similar relative maturities and different-but-equal traits, is a good way to mitigate tassel wrap risk. If one variety suffers from tight tassel wrap, the other is ready with a backup cloud of three- to five-million grains of pollen per plant to get the job done.

Scouting for Wrapped Tassels

When tassel wrap is suspected, agronomists advise growers to make a preliminary scouting pass during the R1-R2 silking stage followed by a second pass three to five days later. During these inspections, growers should look for twisted, bent or “buggy-whip” upper leaves shortly before tasseling.

Growers can also track pollination progress by gently husking a sample of ears to check for unpollinated kernels and conducting a shake test to see whether silks detach, which indicates pollination has occurred.

Lessons learned include the need for diversification and data-driven decisions:

  • A diverse variety of hybrids is a strong defense against mid-summer weather swings and events. Get out ahead of RGS, and don’t rely too heavily on a single genetic family across the operation.
  • Documentation throughout the growing season is crucial. Review the previous year’s field notes to see which hybrids and planting windows suffered the most leaf constriction and compare/contrast with insights for the upcoming season.
  • Because the warm, wet conditions that cause RGS can also trigger disease development, applying fungicide at tassel can help growers get a jumpstart on pathogens like tar spot and Southern rust and preserve yield potential.

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When it comes to corn, weather is always a gamble. Even your best planned field can find itself at odds with the thermometer. You can’t control the weather, but you can prepare to recognize the signs of heat stress and act accordingly.

Recognizing Heat Stress

The optimal temperature for corn is 86 F; heat stress on corn can occur when that number is surpassed. The combination of hot days and warm nights leads to additional plant stress. If daily temperatures routinely are at or exceed 95 F, corn is likely experiencing the negative impacts of being too hot.

As you check fields, keep an eye out for heat stress:

  • Are your corn leaves dry and rolled up? This heat stress sign indicates that the plant is shrinking its surface area to reduce water loss.
  • Do you see yellowing and burning along corn leaf edges? In severe drought, leaves may experience discoloration and appear gray or tan.

How Corn Responds to Heat

Corn is a sensitive plant, and an increase of a few degrees can have a large effect on productivity. As it warms up, transpiration increases. This is the rate at which water evaporates from leaves. In addition to this, photosynthesis slows down. The plant closes stomates, the openings along the surface of the leaf, to preserve water. This action cuts carbon dioxide intake which is needed for photosynthesis, resulting in slowed plant growth.

High heat also increases the need for water, making the demand for soil water more intense to avoid added water stress. Vapor pressure deficit occurs between the saturated leaves and air, which pulls more water out of the plant. This process places a greater demand on the soil to restore moisture.

Heat Stress Impacts Corn Yield

Despite all that the corn plant does to protect itself from high temperatures, potential yield loss could still happen. If your crop experiences prolonged heat, developmental processes that are needed for higher yields may be interrupted.

When the temperature hits 95 F, pollen and silks begin to dry up and leaf growth starts to slow. At 100 F, pollination will fail. At 113 F, net photosynthesis is reduced by 50-90%. Corn will react to stress the most during pollination and fertilization. Potential yield losses can reach 3-8% per day during this four-to-five-week window.

As the temperature rises, these are the main ways heat stress impacts corn yield:

  • Kernel abortions take place when heat stress occurs at the same time as limited moisture. Kernels are usually aborted from the tip.
  • Kernel set reduces if heat stress occurs within the four-to-five-week window surrounding silking.
  • Ear size traits like diameter and length will shrink. Abnormalities like curved cobs or missing kernel rows can also occur.
  • Reproductive stages that occur during heat stress can lower final yields due to pollen and silks drying out.
  • Grain-fill time is shortened during high nighttime temperatures. The plant uses sugars meant for kernel fill for increased respiration instead.

Heat stress symptoms are intensified when they occur at the same time as drought. When this happens, the plant has a higher demand for soil moisture that goes unmet, further fueling the above symptoms.

Protect Yield During High Temperatures

It is safe to assume that heat stress will occur. If you see higher temperatures in the forecast, don’t fret. To help lower the impact of hot weather on yield potential, irrigate fields when extreme heat occurs.

Proactive management can also help protect future fields from intense heat stress symptoms. Focus on management strategies that conserve soil moisture like no-till or reduced-till to give crops the best chance during drought. High temperatures will impact corn plants less when there is adequate soil moisture. You can also choose hybrids that have strong stress tolerance and drought resistance traits.

Reducing other stressors like disease and pest threats will also help keep the plant hardier, including applying a fungicide like Miravis® Neo or Trivapro® fungicides to help offset some of the negative impacts of heat stress.

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As margins tighten, markets shift and AI usage grows, growers and retailers are looking for digital farm management tools that will evolve along with them. Cropwise™ is designed to help users plan, monitor, manage and add value to their operation from one connected platform to address a variety of tasks and agronomic issues.

What Is Cropwise?

Cropwise is an integrated farm management technology platform that gives growers and retailers the tools needed to boost operational efficiency. This includes:

  • Simplifying data entry and sharing.
  • Supporting decisions throughout the growing season.
  • Connecting scouting, imagery, reporting, financials and sustainability.

Cropwise helps users spend less time managing disconnected data and more time acting on field-level insights.

How Does Cropwise Help Growers and Retailers?

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Cropwise has a lot of useful features and is good for recordkeeping.

Jason H. Cropwise User

The suite of tools enables growers and retailers to:

  • Solve agronomic challenges and simplify decision-making throughout the season.
  • Reduce time spent on data entry by maintaining data year-over-year and using a single log-in for all integrated applications.
  • Maintain ownership and easily manage their data securely.
  • Help catch issues in the field and react to agronomic challenges quickly, potentially safeguarding their bottom lines.
  • Generate reports quickly and easily on financials, sustainability and more.

What Support Is Available for Cropwise Users?

Cropwise continues to improve with new tools, features, third-party integrations and partners. To help users with navigating updates and onboarding team members, Syngenta Digital support staff based in Murray, Kentucky, offers training sessions, demos and troubleshooting support to ensure all users have a positive experience.

How Do I Learn More About Cropwise?

Growers and retailers should contact their local Syngenta sales rep or AgriEdge® program specialist to learn more.

Reach out to the Syngenta Digital team at www.cropwise.com/us/contact-us to schedule a demo.

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“Corn sweat,” the colorful shorthand for transpiration in corn, is generally a healthy, natural process. But under the right conditions, it can contribute to negative consequences.

What is Corn Sweat?

This process occurs when sunny days and high temperatures cause the corn plants to release water through their stomata, or pores, on the undersides of leaves. Stomata open to allow the plants to take in carbon dioxide (CO2), a crucial gas for photosynthesis, and to release oxygen and water vapor to cool them as temperatures rise. The process also delivers nutrients to plants as water rises up the stalks. During dry spells, the stomata close to retain water and protect yield.

Corn Sweat Contributes to Disease Spread

Evapotranspiration is the combination of plant transpiration plus evaporation from the acreage on which the crop grows. The extra moisture adds more heat to the environment, creating muggy days and nights that reduce a plant’s cooling ability. These steamy conditions are especially hospitable to fungal diseases, including Northern corn leaf blight, tar spot and rusts.

For the most part, corn sweat is a regional phenomenon, particularly impacting the Midwest and Ohio.

Preventing Disease Spread From Corn Sweat

To combat this condition, preventive fungicide applications are a good choice, especially when high daytime humidity is followed by cooler nights that bring heavy dew.

When to Start Scouting

Growers should start scouting for signs of disease from the V12 to V14 growth stages, especially if high heat and humidity have already set in. V16 to VT is the most crucial scouting window — earlier if tar spot is suspected. When disease is present, the optimal time for fungicide applications is VT to R1, particularly if lesions are found on 50% of plants. Growers should continue scouting at R2 to R3 for prolific fungi like tar spot and Southern rust. They should also prioritize fields with corn-on-corn, no-till practices or susceptible hybrids.

Preventing Excess Water Loss in Corn

As important as it is for cooling and supplying plant nutrients, transpiration equals water loss in plants — something growers can’t afford, especially in a particularly thirsty crop.

But Midwest growers have found Miravis® Neo fungicide can help both control diseases in the canopy and lower transpiration rates, conserving more water and nutrients, even in drought. With a three-active-ingredient-formulation — including azoxystrobin, propiconazole and ADEPIDYN® technology, Miravis Neo can help boost potential yield. Its plant-health benefits support efficiencies in plant photosynthesis, water and nutrient use, and stronger stands for improved harvestability and ROI potential.