Syngenta Thrive

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Imagine a high school where classrooms connect to a barn with goats, students care for alpacas, and cows graze in the distance. You’re probably picturing a rural community, but this school is in one of the most populous cities in the country: Chicago.

“What we’re learning here is so important for the agriculture industry,” says senior Zachary Gonzalez-Murillo. “Not a lot of kids know what agriculture is.”

The Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences is a magnet high school within the Chicago Public Schools system. In addition to typical high school curricula, students graduate from this high school with technological skills and agricultural knowledge. This gives them a major step up in college and beyond, says Robin Thomas, early talent and university relations manager with Syngenta.

An Urban Oasis

Despite the urban setting, the school sits on 73 acres of land — 32 of which are filled with livestock, beehives and a market garden that produces a variety of crops, including sweet corn, peppers, squash and pumpkins. As part of their curriculum, students tend to the animals, manage crops, and take that harvest to the school’s farmstand — where they sell it to the community.

“In their last two years, students have mini majors where they’re placed into one of seven agricultural pathways,” says Noelle Coronado, lead agriculture teacher and FFA chapter advisor at the ag sciences school. “Everything they’re doing in these ag classes has an instructional portion and a hands-on project. And all their projects benefit the school, its animals and crops, and the local community.”

Following their sophomore year, students rank their top pathway choices, which include animal science, agricultural mechanics and technology, biotechnology in agriculture, agricultural finance and economics, horticulture and landscape design, food science, and natural resources and environmental management.

Connecting the Dots

As a senior in the animal science pathway, one of Kaili Norwood’s biggest responsibilities is caring for the school’s three alpacas. Norwood arrives each morning to check the animals’ food and water and ensure their home is clean. Alpacas Mikey, Gunner and Tina each have distinct personalities and play a key role in the agricultural environment of the school.

“Right now, some of the students are working to turn the alpacas’ stool into fertilizer that is then used in the market garden to help the soil, because it has great nutrients for the crops,” says Norwood. “I’d never thought about how animal science is agriculture before, but now I definitely get to see how it’s all tied together.”

Many of the pathways overlap in ways the students didn’t consider before attending the school.

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Everything they’re doing in these ag classes has an instructional portion and a hands-on project. And all their projects benefit the school, its animals and crops, and the local community.

Noelle Coronado Lead Agriculture Teacher and FFA Chapter Advisor at The Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences

“Our agricultural finance students are in charge of managing many aspects of the farmstand,” says Coronado. “The stand opens after the school day ends and, on most Saturdays, our students are the ones helping in the shop, selling the products and learning how to successfully manage a real business.”

The farmstand, connected to the barn, serves as a place for students to sell the products they’ve been creating in the hands-on portion of their classes. Beyond food, the nearby community visits the farmstand for its farm-to-market products that include soy candles, zucchini bread, goat milk lotion and yarn spun from the alpacas’ wool.

“We’re getting to see what problems farmers face and where the money they spend on their farm goes, including to crop protection and general management of their farms,” says Gonzalez-Murillo, who is in the agricultural finance and economics pathway.

A Lasting Impact

Teachers at the school believe the students will apply what they’re learning to life after graduation, and many do continue on to higher education programs and careers in ag.

“We’re grooming the next generation of farmers,” says Brittney Kee, horticulture science teacher. “We have budding agronomists, soil scientists and greenhouse producers. I have a lot of kids that are really into urban farming, so they like vertical gardening. We’re getting more and more students excited and passionate about agriculture.”

Alumni contributions demonstrate the lasting impact the high school has on students. A former student donated the school’s most recent addition to its alpaca family, and many of the teachers remain in contact with former students who work in the industry. Additionally, seven of the 10 staff in the agriculture department are alumni themselves. They wanted to give back to a place that was so formative in their youth.

“My life-long mentor still works at the school and is a huge reason for my career change that led me back here as an educator after graduating over 10 years earlier,” says Coronado. “I don’t think I would ever want to leave this position. I love watching students have these light bulb moments about how much agriculture plays a key role in their day-to-day lives, and I see them learning how to speak articulately about the industry.”

Moving Forward

Schools like this one help students prepare for careers by providing them with networking and internship opportunities that many high school students typically don’t receive. All the school’s students are members of their FFA chapter, attend a two-week summer education program after their sophomore year, and can apply for a paid summer internship prior to their junior and senior years.

When it comes to applying for college-level internships or an entry-level position at a company like Syngenta, these activities help them stand out from their competition.

“When I’m talking to college students about their resumes, I always recommend they leave high school activities like their FFA and 4-H leadership positions on there until they graduate,” Thomas says. “That kind of experience, especially at a unique school with a diverse background, shows us that they’ve already acquired a lot of the skills that will help them in their career.”

Their agricultural involvement goes above and beyond the extracurricular activities of FFA. Students participate in agricultural activities during all four years of high school through their curriculum, annual career fairs with ag professionals and internships that provide an outlet to apply what they’re learning to real situations. They also bring an urban voice to a traditionally rural field, which brings new perspectives and ideas to the industry.

Not all students who attend the Chicago High School for Agricultural Sciences end up with a career in agriculture, says Coronado, but all gain understanding of its importance and how they can be better stewards of the land, their food and the industry that keeps the world moving.

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Modern ag science continues improving the efficacy of crop inputs. Growers today have more options for plant nutrition, managing pest resistance, controlling weeds and increasing profit potential. But variables still exist that compromise product efficacy. Experts say year-round attention to best practices is the path to optimum performance.

Input Performance is Elemental

Awareness of soil characteristics is fundamental to crop protection product performance, says Kelly Morgan, Ph.D., professor of soil fertility and water management at the University of Florida’s Southwest Research and Education Center.

“You typically have to put more product on soils with higher organic matter than you would in a sandy soil,” says Morgan, who specializes in soil ecosystems for agriculture. “That’s because the organic matter is going to tie-up some of the chemical you’ve put out.”

Another factor is the “soil solution,” which impacts plants’ nutrient uptake. “There are three elements that affect nutrient and chemical availability to a plant,” Morgan explains. “If the soil solution is on the acidic side — a pH below seven — you have iron and aluminum, which bind nutrients and chemical products to the soil so they’re not as available to the plant.”

And the more acidic the solution is, he says, the tighter it binds. On the other hand, in the alkaline range — above a pH of seven — calcium is the culprit, keeping the crop from taking up the nourishment it needs, as well as the herbicides that would give it a jump on competing weeds.

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There are three elements that affect nutrient and chemical availability to a plant. If the soil solution is on the acidic side — a pH below seven — you have iron and aluminum, which bind nutrients and chemical products to the soil so they’re not as available to the plant.

Kelly Morgan, Ph.D. Professor of Soil Fertility and Water Management
University of Florida’s Southwest Research and Education Center

Morgan recommends growers test the soil for each field annually. In the case of shorter-season crops, the interval should be increased to testing before each planting.

“A lot of growers have gotten away from regular testing. But we’re trying to get them to go back to it, because if they just make the same applications they did last year, they may get different results,” Morgan says, noting that applying only what the soil needs is better for the environment and improves a grower’s bottom line.

Leon Hunter, agronomy service manager for Syngenta’s east Heartland region, says in his experience, growers do run soil tests regularly, as part of field planning.

“If a soil analysis indicates there are nutritional differences, be it micronutrients or macronutrients, growers can correct the soil pH,” he says. “Fertility and lime is one way to do that.”

Those corrections have a positive impact on herbicide use, Hunter adds, helping growers increase bushels overall.

Slow and Steady Wins the Race

Some common shortcuts to crop protection plans often adversely impact product performance. Using incompatible products, adding generics to name brands, and not following recommended mixing orders can all lead to problems. In some cases, those problems decrease yield and increase costs.

“If you mix something in the wrong order, it can waste a whole tanker load of product,” Matt Geiger, Syngenta agronomy service representative for south-central Illinois, says. He strongly recommends that growers who plan to mix new products do a jar test before going all-in on a full tank. Using a 2-liter bottle or a mason jar, Geiger measures out the products in the tank-mix in smaller amounts at the same ratio in the planned tank-mix to test compatibility.

“For example, if you want to spray 3 quarts/A of Acuron1 corn herbicide, you’ll need 200 milliliters in the jar to equal the 3-quart spray rate,” he says. “Then you add products at equivalent rates of what they’d be in the field.”

Geiger calls it the mini spray tank and it gives growers a visual on whether the mix is uniform, also referred to as homogeneous, or needs to be adjusted.

“You’re using that to see if you get any sort of what we call flocculation — chunks, basically,” he says. “If the mixture stays clear and doesn’t get cloudy or get these flocculation-type pieces in there, you’re good to go.”

However, if you mix something in the wrong order, “it can go to what we call ‘cottage cheese,’ and sometimes you can’t get it back,” Geiger adds.

More Agitation, Less Aggravation

Insufficient agitation can undermine even a good mixture, especially if it includes fertilizer, which has a higher bulk density than the herbicide. Geiger says products can separate in the tank if you’re not agitating.

For example, he says if a grower mixes up an entire tanker load of herbicide plus liquid fertilizer and does not agitate it, there is a chance of nonuniform application of the product across the field, or fields. The first part of the field may get a higher rate of fertilizer and a lower rate of herbicide, and the opposite toward the end. Agitation, especially in complicated mixtures, is very important to get a uniform application of product.

In fact, it’s such a big deal that Syngenta has a group of scientists with diverse specialties dedicated to the successful application of products for every kind of crop. Their focus is dose transfer: ensuring active ingredients reach the plants with minimal off-target movement or unintended damage. Scientists also thoroughly assess which application tools growers need for the job.

The head of the application technology group, Ram Ramalingam, Ph.D., says product familiarity, equipment calibration, and nozzles set for proper flow rate and spray pattern are key to make the best possible applications.

“We want to minimize the amount of active ingredients left in the tank and the frequency that clogged filters or nozzles affect a grower’s ability to complete the process. We also look at whether products are compatible in the tank or have sedimentation issues,” Ramalingam says. The group does extensive testing to ensure various common products are compatible. If the group finds products are not compatible, they notify commercial colleagues right away to get the word out to growers.

Time and Temperature Work Against Efficacy

Water also matters with application, Ramalingam says, and it’s not just its quality or pH that impacts products.

“Temperature plays a huge role,” he says. “As it gets hot, the rate of hydrolysis increases, and if you leave a mix in the tank for extended periods of time in broad daylight, it could also get really hot inside. In terms of losing efficacy, both time and temperature play a major role.”

Timing is perhaps the most important factor in product efficacy.

“One of the biggest mistakes I see is folks trying to wait until the weeds come up to do their weed control programs,” Geiger says. “They call it row-and-go. They want to make sure they’ve got rows of corn before they spray their herbicides, but weeds are much easier to control if they aren’t out of the ground yet.”

It’s a risky choice because weeds can emerge and surpass 4 inches in height rather quickly, which is over the labeled size for species like waterhemp on many herbicide labels.

And then it rains.

“If you’re out of the field for three days, that could result in 3 to 4 inches of weed growth and then your weeds are off-label,” Geiger says. “It’s a lot more challenging to control weeds after they emerge.”

Ultimately, these experts agree, growers can implement a few simple management steps to help mitigate potential crop management issues. Testing soil, careful product selection, and timely and accurate applications provide crops with the conditions they need to thrive.

A tool is only as good as the way it is used, Geiger says, and even the most efficacious products must be used properly to maximize performance.

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1Always consult the product label for complete use and application information.

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Lindie Huffman, 2022 winner of the Syngenta #RootedInAg contest, grew up surrounded by tobacco fields and beef cattle while most children were playing with tablets or riding bikes. She moved to the sixth-generation operation when she was just five years old. Her agrarian playhouse, otherwise known as the family farm, sits in northern Kentucky.

“It’s hot, time consuming and labor-intensive work,” Huffman says. “Our farm was very much about quality over quantity.”

At the center of the operation is the home of Huffman’s grandparents, where she spent countless hours. She worked the land and bonded with her Grandfather Kenny, whom she coined Papaw. He became the most influential person in her life.

An Influential Bond

The #RootedinAg contest from Syngenta asks growers and ag professionals to share the story of their ag mentor. In her essay, Huffman honors her grandfather, who worked as a roadside agronomist for the state of Kentucky while managing the family farm. “His level of commitment is what I saw,” says Huffman. “And that showed me the opportunity within agriculture.”

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He passed that on to Huffman, who is passionate about lending a helping hand to all involved in the ag industry. Her desire to serve others is driven by lessons learned from her grandfather. “I realized that I have a servant’s heart and I want to be able to help other farmers,” she says.

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His level of commitment is what I saw, says Huffman. And that showed me the opportunity within agriculture.

Lindie Huffman Accounting Extension Agent for Agricultural National Resources, University of Kentucky

Huffman says her grandfather taught her critical ag lessons from a young age that propelled her towards an agricultural career. He taught her about different plants by showing her how to identify blades of grass and picking up leaves around the tobacco fields.

“He was the only person in my family who had gone to university, and he made sure I had that opportunity,” says Huffman. “I went to the University of Kentucky, where he attended.”

Huffman’s story made an impression on both the online voters and the #RootedinAg contest judges, who named her the 2022 grand prizewinner.

“Lindie’s roots in ag run deep,” says Wendell Calhoun, Syngenta strategic marketing and operations manager. “We thank her and everyone who shared their stories. Those stories inspire us to stay innovative for the future generations of the ag community.”

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Making an Impact in Ag

Huffman is now an accounting extension agent for agricultural national resources at the University of Kentucky. On top of her work in educational programing and community development, she helps local farmers adopt new management practices and find new marketing opportunities.

One of Huffman’s largest projects was growing the Pendleton County Farmer’s Market from three vendors in 2012 to 34 in 2022. “Farmers’ markets are a catalyst for community,” says Huffman.” The market is now a center where the community connects with food and local growers’ profit and provide the public with fresh produce.

The farmer’s market is also home to Sprout’s Kids’ Club, a farmers’ market-based children’s program that teaches about produce, local food systems and more. Here children engage directly with farmers by spending tokens as regular market shoppers would.

As part of Huffman’s prize, Syngenta made a $1,000 donation in her grandfather’s name to the Sprouts Kids’ Club at the Pendleton County Farmer’s Market. The club educates children about agriculture as Huffman’s grandfather did for her, which is why she chose it as the donation’s recipient. The donation will provide the children with access to more opportunities to learn and connect with agriculture.

“I think that there’s power in storytelling and opportunity in letting people know where their food comes from,” says Huffman. “It builds relationships with the consumer. My mission is to keep farmers farming and to keep families fed through access to local foods.”

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Q. What is Sudden Death Syndrome, and how do you identify it?

A. Abigail Peterson, director of agronomy, Illinois Soybean Association: Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS) is a disease caused by a soilborne fungus, Fusarium virguliforme, that can survive in both corn and soybean residue systems. This fungal infection starts at soybean germination and is more prevalent in cool, wet growing conditions. The disease usually forms during the early reproductive stages. Growers sometimes misdiagnose SDS due to its resemblance to brown stem rot or stem canker. When scouting during the later vegetative stages, also known as the early reproductive stages, you’ll first notice leaf discoloration, which can range from yellow to brown. To eliminate the overlap of brown stem rot’s similar foliar symptoms, check the plant’s root. At the base of the plant, occasionally you will see a blue mold on the outside of the taproot – a sign of SDS. A final scouting step is to split the stem and evaluate if the internal tissue is discolored.

A. Dale Ireland, technical product lead, Syngenta: SDS is a “top five” soybean yield destructor – and has been for many years. It is an environmentally driven disease caused by Fusarium virguliforme, a commonly found soil fungus. Soy growers know the classic foliar yellow flecking is actually not the disease itself, but it is caused by F. virguliforme toxins produced in the root, plugging the vascular system within the soy plant. These toxins don’t allow proper nutrient flow between the root system and leaf canopy. The yellow flecks in the leaves coalesce and destroy much-needed leaf area during pod fill – often significantly impacting final yield.

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Select soybean varieties with high-yield potential and with strong SDS scores.

Dale Ireland Technical Product Lead, Syngenta

Q. Do certain environmental conditions increase the likelihood of this disease?

A. Ireland: Environmental conditions highly impact SDS. An ideal SDS season begins with early planting in cooler, wetter conditions followed by a high-yield environment through much of the growing season. Some stress during early pod fill can create a load on the plant roots to deliver moisture and nutrients to the leaves, and this in turn increases the Fusarium virguliforme root infection toxins. Yellow flecks begin showing and coalescing and destroying leaf area, which is vital as it acts as a photosynthetic factory – producing what a plant needs to develop young soybeans in pods.

A. Peterson: Cool, wet soil conditions are usually a prime environment for SDS. The slowed germination from these conditions allows the fungus to infect the soybean roots. Wet conditions are a conduit for many soybean fungal diseases. SDS is unique in that its impact to a given area can be varied and unpredictable. Fields with a history of soybean cyst nematode usually have a correlation to SDS presence.

Q. When should growers be on the lookout for SDS?

A. Ireland: SDS typically begins showing up in spots – often field headlands or field entrances or compacted soil areas – in August. The earlier these symptoms show, often the greater the yield impact.

A. Peterson: It’s hard to predict or know the chance you’ll have the disease because SDS sometimes occurs later in the season. Know your field disease history and take good records of specific disease problems. Scout fields to accurately diagnose the problem. Detection from aerial plant health images can be a source of notification, although leaf tissue may be further intensified at that time than if you spotted it earlier during routine ground visuals. Also, contact your agronomist to check how products affect the health of your leaf tissue.

Q. What can growers do to mitigate this disease?

A. Peterson: SDS-infected fields can result in flower and/or pod abortion. Planting during warm, dry conditions isn’t always easy, but can help reduce SDS infection. It may help to plant historically SDS-prone fields later. Management practices that increase soil aggregation, reduce compaction, increase residue breakdown, and minimize soil loss can all reduce the risk of SDS. When reviewing varieties, choose soybeans that score well for both SDS tolerance and soybean cyst nematode resistance. Although SDS is associated with leaf tissue symptoms, a foliar fungicide will not affect a disease that infects the root system. To help reduce yield loss, evaluate seed treatments that have data provided from trials shown to protect yield in SDS conditions.

A. Ireland: Select soybean varieties with high-yield potential and with strong SDS scores. Managing your plant parasitic nematodes will help protect against SDS, too. Nematodes open the root system for Fusarium virguliforme infection and stress plants, leading to worse SDS infections. Another option is adopting a seed- and plant-safe seed treatment, like Saltro®, that protects against SDS and nematodes. Rotating away from continuous soybeans also helps. Not managing SDS leads to more SDS. Because Fusarium virguliforme can establish itself in soils, if you choose to ignore SDS, the longer you grow soybeans, the greater the chances of SDS becoming established and turning into a perennial problem.

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“If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Unfortunately, that’s the wrong strategy when facing corn rootworm (CRW). The pest is adaptive and destructive. Now more than ever, monitoring and maneuvering are essential defense strategies.

“Corn rootworm is our No. 1 economic pest. When it’s bad, it’s really bad,” says Erin Hodgson, Ph.D., Iowa State University extension entomologist.

Andrew Nesseth, crop consultant with EXTended Ag Services of Lakefield, Minnesota, says CRW pressure and crop damage is increasing in his area as mild winters and more continuous corn acres create ideal conditions. Dry weather also amplifies yield losses, as damaged roots are less likely to regenerate, leaving fewer roots to take up moisture.

As frustrating as losses can be, Hodgson urges restraint in management. “We do not recommend the ‘kitchen sink’ approach,” she says. “Corn rootworm is a very adaptable pest. If you use every tool all the time, a small population will adapt and overcome.”

Instead, she says, growers should assess CRW pressure and build a strategic battle plan.

Assess the Enemy

The most significant damage from CRW occurs when larvae feed on brace roots in June and July. This is when to start scouting for the pest.

“It’s most accurate to dig corn and look for root injury, but it’s a time-consuming and miserable task in July,” Hodgson says, noting that using sticky traps to capture CRW adults is an easier and still effective option for scouting.

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Most problematic situations occur when the same management practice is used year after year. Changing things up keeps the options we have working better for longer.

Bruce Battles Technical Agronomy Manager at Syngenta

If growers catch two or more beetles per card per day, it indicates pressure will exceed economic thresholds. Some CRW eggs undergo extended diapause, which is a period of suspended development. However, in areas of the Eastern Corn Belt where a variant exists that will lay eggs in soybeans, growers should also consider scouting soybean fields.

“It doesn’t take many larvae to reduce yields by 30 to 40%,” Hodgson says. “Beyond root damage, feeding opens roots to pathogens and other pests. It’s death by 1,000 papercuts.”

Build a Battle Plan

“Most problematic situations occur when the same management practice is used year after year,” says Bruce Battles, Syngenta technical agronomy manager. “Changing things up keeps the options we have working better for longer.”

Some options to mix and match based on crop history, planting date and expected and historical pest pressure include:

  • Low pressure: Use a non-CRW traited hybrid with or without a soil insecticide.
  • High pressure: Use a soil insecticide along with a single CRW trait, multiple CRW traits or a non-CRW traited hybrid.
  • Very high pressure: Rotate to a non-host crop for one or more years.

Traits are the baseline for most growers battling CRW, says Tim O’Brien, Syngenta traits manager. They provide easy, season-long CRW protection. And with stacked traits, growers can use one product to control multiple insects. One option is DuracadeViptera™ trait stack, which protects against 16 above- and below-ground pests.

But traits alone can’t hold the line in very high pressure CRW fields; A four- to five-year rotating strategy is a better option, Battles says. It might look like this: Following soybeans plant a non-CRW traited hybrid. Next season, use a CRW-traited hybrid and monitor CRW pressure. Depending on pressure, use a CRW-traited hybrid again the next year, but rotate or combine modes of action. If CRW pressure increases, use CRW-traited hybrids with soil-applied insecticides. In cases of particularly strong pressure, an in-season insecticide application to reduce adult CRW populations may provide some relief.

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Seed treatment can provide more protection, but isn’t a stand-alone alternative, Battles says. CruiserMaxx® Corn 1250 seed treatment is one effective option. It increases seedling vigor to help overcome root injury and provides short-term systemic protection for early roots. The CRW node injury scale is zero to three nodes, with one node being above economic thresholds. Battles says CruiserMaxx Corn 1250 can reduce damage by 0.25 nodes.

Identify Future Risk

Past and current field management are good indicators of future CRW populations. Scouting for root damage and tracking adult beetle populations are good predictors of expected CRW populations next season. Each corn rootworm adult female can lay 1,500 to 2,000 eggs. When those eggs hatch the following season, their larvae begin to feed on corn roots. When using traits, the larvae must take a bite for the trait to provide control. “If everyone comes to the table for a little nibble, that’s a lot of potential damage,” Battles says.

Planting date is also an important consideration, as CRW beetles tend to concentrate in fresh habitat, Nesseth says.

“They go to the youngest corn,” he says. “Beetles will concentrate in areas with late-planted hybrids or replanted acres.”

Longer-season corn can lead to greater problems, too. “It increases the length of time there’s good habitat for corn rootworm beetles. It’s a complex problem,” Nesseth says.

Rotating to a non-host crop like soybeans is the best way to derail increasingly heavy CRW populations. When scouting shows very high pressure, it’s time to rotate from continuous corn, O’Brien says.

“It is difficult for any CRW technologies to stand up to extreme, high-pressure situations,” he says. “We must rotate to maximize yield potential and protect the CRW management tools we have.”

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Steve, David and Jeannette come from different backgrounds, live in different regions of the country, and work with different plant varieties as crop protection field development (CPFD) scientists for Syngenta. But they have something in common: nobody understands their job.

To those outside agriculture, CPFD jobs are even more of a mystery. David Black, a senior research development scientist, works with crops in Arkansas. Black says friends are often surprised to learn that plants get diseases and that a Ph.D. in weed science is a real thing.

However, CPFD scientists are a crucial link between the development of Syngenta products and getting them on the market, running trials to see whether active ingredients that look promising in the lab will work in the field. It’s a big job, and there’s plenty to do every season — or year-round in Jeannette Rapicavoli’s territory, Southern California and Arizona.

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The chemists narrow active ingredients down by looking at the products in greenhouses and growth chambers, but that’s not the real world. We’re the first step in looking at products in a living biological environment — soils, direct sunlight, rainfall.

David Black Senior Research and Development Scientist at Syngenta

“In the desert, it doesn’t rain much, and it certainly doesn’t snow or get very cold, so there are always crops going into the ground,” says Rapicavoli, CPFD research and development scientist. “It keeps us very busy out here.”

In the Midwest, if CPFD scientists aren’t planting, they’re planning. Early in the year Mroczkiewicz, who primarily works with corn and soybeans, is prepping his summer trials, doing the paperwork and stocking up on supplies.

“I’ll have somewhere from 30 to 35 field trials in a typical year, usually in several different locations,” he says. “I initiate those, make all the applications, and spend my very hectic spring and early summer keeping up with them. Weekends really don’t have much meaning for us during that time.”

From there, he’s occupied with establishing trials, and then managing them so he can collect performance data.

From Lab to Land

CPFDs are essential in ensuring prospective agronomic solutions have on-farm viability. Syngenta chemists in Basel, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom screen thousands of active ingredients for their agricultural potential. CPFDs around the globe then test these compounds on crops.

“The chemists narrow active ingredients down by looking at the products in greenhouses and growth chambers, but that’s not the real world,” Black says. “We’re the first step in looking at products in a living biological environment — soils, direct sunlight, rainfall.”

Once the field trials are underway, the chemists and other colleagues often tour the trial plots, in what Mroczkiewicz described as a kind of internal outreach.

For Rapicavoli, the tours are an opportunity to be an ambassador for desert agriculture.

“It’s fun when we have our global colleagues from our headquarters out, because some of them have never been to the desert,” she says. “It’s exciting to show them how much production there is in that environment, and all the different crops and diseases we can work on.”

Being ambassadors for agriculture is something else the scientists have in common. When not in the field, they’re available to schools, community organizations and local projects. Mroczkiewicz, for example, writes a column for his local paper and gives guest lectures to college ag classes and at a high school’s FFA® club. He enjoys talking to non-ag groups, too.

A field development scientist inspects corn seedlings

“I spoke to a Rotary club, and they were one of my most enthusiastic audiences because everything I told them was new information,” he says. “I was able to dispel a lot of myths they’d heard about what exactly a genetically modified organism, or GMO crop is, and they got it directly from somebody who has helped develop GMO crops, versus something they saw on Facebook or CNN.”

Nancy Bell, a high school ag science teacher and FFA advisor, has known Mroczkiewicz for more than 20 years and helps with his research alongside her farmer-husband Devon Bell, who has worked with Mroczkiewicz since 2001.

“Steve has a passion for education,” Nancy Bell says, noting that his support of ag in the community includes providing 20 dozen eggs for her FFA poultry unit every year.

Black, who at one time wanted to be a college professor, also enjoys speaking to university students and offering insight on ag as a career.

“A lot of times students just know they like ag and are curious about jobs,” Black says. “We can provide information on what roles in agriculture really entail.”

Rapicavoli, who lives about four hours from her primary research site in Yuma, Arizona, is becoming a community resource there.

“I’m always out there attending local meetings, connecting with growers and university cooperators,” she says. “It’s important to me that I establish myself as a reliable, knowledgeable point of contact.”

Rapicavoli is in year six of her career, while Mroczkiewicz and Black have done the job for 24 and 27, respectively. While they may feel anonymous sometimes, it’s clear they love their CPFD positions.

“It’s such a privilege to work in this role,” Rapicavoli says. “There are only about 30 of us around the country, and sometimes I think, ‘Wow, I get to be one of these people.’ It’s an honor. And it’s never boring, that’s for sure.”

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Q. What are the details of Kellogg’s InGrained™ program?

A. Meryl Kennedy , CEO of 4Sisters Rice and Kennedy Rice Mill: Kellogg’s InGrained™ program will invest $2 million over five years to provide farmers in my area — Louisiana and the Lower Mississippi River basin, what we call the Delta — with training in irrigation management, nutrient management and soil health. Kellogg is providing farmers with a financial incentive for every ton of greenhouse gases (GHG) their new practices help reduce. But Kellogg’s InGrained™ is more than that, it’s a collaboration between Syngenta, Kellogg Co., Regrow Ag and Kennedy Rice Mill to bring this program to life.

A. Stacey Shaw, senior sustainability lead at Syngenta: Through the program, Kellogg wanted to partner with growers to help them adopt new practices for GHG reduction, especially methane, but also to take off a little bit of the sting of implementing a new practice. For the program’s 2022 pilot year, the company offered growers $20 per ton of GHG reduction — plus agronomic support, GHG quantification, and other resources at no additional cost to farmers — to remove some of the risk of trying something new on the farm. Kellogg’s intention is to help them get started, knowing that positive changes on the farm can be still risky in the beginning.

Q. What was the impetus for developing a methane reduction program for rice specifically?

A. Shaw: Rice is a major contributor to methane emissions and that makes it an easy target1. Opportunities and methods that reduce methane also have other positive effects such as water reduction. Not very many people have adopted methane reduction yet, but it is very doable.

A. Kennedy: Over half of the world’s population relies on rice as a primary source of nourishment2. Also, this is a really important grain for Kellogg. They rely on rice for their iconic brands like Rice Krispies® and Special K® cereals. Many of these rice products and these varieties come from the Mississippi Delta. So, when we thought about how we can make a really big difference specifically for rice production, we thought about how to reduce methane.

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Q. Why is methane reduction an important sustainability issue?

A. Kennedy: The impacts of climate change affect us all. But these impacts are of particular concern to farmers, like me, who grow crops to produce the food we eat. Rice production is responsible for an estimated 12% of the total global methane emissions, and methane is a GHG that’s 20 times more potent than carbon dioxide2. As rice farmers and stewards of the land, it’s our responsibility to address these concerns.

A. Shaw: Methane is one of the bigger contributors to global GHG emissions. Methane with nitrous oxide and other emissions contribute to the greenhouse gas issue.

Q. What are the desired results from Kellogg’s InGrained™? How does it help growers — who are already focused on land stewardship?

A. Shaw: The desired result is the adoption of methane reduction practices and reduction of emissions. Kellogg also wants the program to be scalable, ideally across more of their rice draw area. But before spreading the program, we all have to make sure that it works as intended and that farmers see value in it. By piloting the program this crop year with Kennedy, a trusted Kellogg supplier and very large and prominent grower in Mer Rouge, Louisiana, Kellogg hopes to show other growers in that area that they can be successful in reducing methane by implementing these practices. Some rice growers are already doing a lot of the methane-reduction practices that we’re promoting. However, adoption has been slow and many growers only do it on parts of their farms. So, this might be an incentive to them to add additional acres and adopt more practices.

A. Kennedy: From Kellogg’s perspective, the goal would be to help educate and train farmers on how to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. At Kennedy, a vertically integrated agricultural business, we take rice from the farm to the finished food. So, we feel like we’re stewards of the land; this is who we are, and this is part of what we do already. We’re being asked, as farmers, to focus on so many things: soil erosion, reducing chemicals and fertilizers, conserving water. However, reducing methane gas is particularly important for rice. It can truly help create a greener supply chain from seed to package, and so that, to me, is the real benefit from the farmer perspective.

1 https://ricepedia.org/rice-as-food/the-global-staple-rice-consumers#:~:text=Rice%20is%20the%20staple%20food,20%25%20of%20their%20daily%20calories

2 https://www.epa.gov/ghgemissions/understanding-global-warming-potentials

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Q: Why was 2021 a breakout year for Southern rust in corn? What do you expect to see in 2022?

A. Phil Krieg, Illinois agronomy service representative at Syngenta: 2021 was a breakout year for Southern rust because of the near-perfect weather conditions that we had for the disease to establish, infect and spread north throughout the Corn Belt. When conditions favor rust development, the infection cycle continually repeats itself — spreading disease throughout the plant and helping it to readily move from plant to plant. Because Southern rust does not overwinter in the Midwest, it’s always a wait-and-see game as to whether the disease presents itself in any given year, so we have no idea if we’ll see it in 2022.

A. Travis Faske, Ph.D., professor and extension plant pathologist at the University of Arkansas: Southern corn rust is an annual occurrence in the mid-Southern United States, and severity depends on environmental conditions and the corn growth stage when rust is first detected. In 2021, several factors contributed to the severity of Southern rust development. First, widespread rainfall delayed planting, which contributed to a wide range of corn growth stages when Southern rust was reintroduced in the region. Second, when rust arrived in July, the weather conditions were very good for rust development. Third, hybrids were susceptible to Southern rust. This year, rust will return to the region, but arrival time and summer weather conditions are the unknown factors.

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Conditions that favor Southern rust development are high relative humidity and temperatures around 80 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit — especially at night.

Phil Krieg Illinois Agronomy Service Representative at Syngenta

Q: How can growers identify Southern rust in corn? What environmental conditions foster the disease, and how does it spread?

A. Krieg: Southern rust pustules are orange to tan, circular or oval, and about 1/16 inch in diameter. Most pustules develop on upper leaf surfaces. The fungus that causes Southern rust can infect a plant after approximately six hours of leaf wetness. Dew usually provides enough moisture to cause infection, but frequent rainfall can promote severe disease development. Conditions that favor Southern rust development are high relative humidity and temperatures around 80 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit — especially at night. Each year, wind currents from southern, more tropical areas carry rust spores north and begin new infections. The weather conditions outlined above take over after the spores arrive and infect the plant, determining the spread and severity of the disease.

A. Faske: Southern rust produces orange-colored pustules that rupture through the upper leaf surface. Pustules are often surrounded by a light green halo and clustered near the first pustule from the initial infection. These pustules are commonly detected in the mid-to-upper canopy. The most common misdiagnosis is common rust. Common rust produces dark-red-colored pustules that can rupture through the lower leaf but are more common on the upper leaf surface. The environmental conditions that favor Southern rust are frequent rainfall causing four to eight hours of leaf wetness, high relative humidity, and warm temperatures (82 to 88 degrees Fahrenheit). Wind spreads the rust spores to infect nearby plants. During the cropping season, windblown spores move progressively northward — infecting new fields.

Q. What is the yield impact of Southern rust in corn when left untreated?

A. Krieg: The Southern rust fungus uses a plant’s nutrients for growth and reproduction, which affects grain fill and ultimately reduces yields. Rust pustules also rupture leaf epidermal tissue, which can interfere with the regulation of water loss by stomata. Consequently, severe rust outbreaks make it harder for plants to use water efficiently, so infected plants may exhibit symptoms of mild to severe drought stress. In severe cases, these infections may predispose plants to secondary infections by stalk rot pathogens, which leads to lodging and yield loss. Yield losses of up to 45% have been reported with severe disease.

A. Faske: Grain yield losses have ranged from 20% to 40% in Arkansas when Southern rust occurred at tassel and the severity and percent of leaf area (ear and nearby leaves) affected at dent was above 40%. However, grain yield losses ranged from 5% to 10% when Southern rust started later at milk, with a similar degree of severity at dent.

Q. What fungicide strategies do you recommend to control Southern rust in corn?

A. Krieg: Applying Trivapro® or Miravis® Neo fungicides before the disease establishes in corn helps give the best return on investment (ROI) and yield protection. In 2021, two-pass fungicide applications helped provide the best ROI and yield response due to the early onset of the disease and the extended period of infection throughout the region.

A. Faske: Scout corn at tassel and later reproductive stages for Southern rust. If detected and conditions favor disease development — and corn growth stages are tassel, silk, blister or milk — protect yield potential with a fungicide. Good coverage is important to protect leaves at mid-canopy. Several fungicides have good efficacy against Southern rust. These fungicides contain a strobilurin fungicide plus at least one other class of fungicide.

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Cover image: Headshots courtesy of Travis Faske and Phil Krieg. 

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Because California only receives around 21 inches of rainfall annually, growers in the state know how to do a lot with a little. For example, they use irrigation and smart water techniques to ensure orchards, row crops and livestock succeed.

“We have no other choice in California ― being water conscious is a necessity,” says Ethan Nichol, a California independent crop consultant.

Water management from California to Maine and every state in between is complex. It requires data about soil moisture and crop moisture uptake, and information about current and upcoming weather conditions. New technologies are more important than ever when it comes to water management in flood, drip and center-pivot irrigation.

Understand Farm Water Consumption

It’s difficult to measure improvement without benchmarking. Growers must know where fields stand today to measure savings from better water-use efficiency.

“One of the biggest struggles I’ve seen is farmers don’t always know how much water they’re putting down on fields,” says Dayna Gross, sustainability manager of partnership and programs for Syngenta North America. “Step one is increasing monitoring to understand what is actually being put out on the field.”

To understand where your operation stands, USDA’s Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education group recommends the following steps:

  1. Collect data. Map fields, location of water supply networks, inventory pumping plans, and meters or measuring points. USDA also recommends noting field slope and soil information, including texture, type and infiltration rates. If the field uses irrigation, then document the irrigation method, the schedule, and well construction and testing records.
  2. Audit the operation. Perform a physical irrigation audit to verify water use by reviewing water- and energy-use efficiency on the farm.
  3. Create a report. Data collection and audit information will provide evidence needed to generate a report about equipment, irrigation schedules and water uses across the operation. This report will provide practical information, such as when to schedule maintenance and how to improve irrigation systems overall.

“That measurement piece and record keeping are key,” says Steven Wall, sustainability development manager for Syngenta North America. “And new tools can help you understand soil moisture and plant health so you can use all of this information to get the right amount of water to the plant at the right growth stage.”

Use Technology to Inform Decisions

The days of walking fields to check for moisture stress aren’t over yet, as soil probes are still widely used, but certain tools help focus scouting efforts. From satellites and drones to stationary soil monitors and plant-sensing technologies, growers can increasingly turn information into action.

“Remote sensing is a great tool, and imagery is a great way to get a feel for how crops are doing,” Wall says. “Aerial imagery is one way to see discoloration or other indicators of plant stress.”

Seed and agronomy companies are taking note. Syngenta, for example, launched the Water+™ Intelligent Irrigation Platform, allowing users to control irrigated corn production and grow corn with less water. It’s a collaboration with growers, industry partners and Lindsay Corp.

Growers have more precise information about irrigation on-farm with the Water+ Intelligent Irrigation Platform, which brings together Syngenta genetics, crop protection inputs, agronomic advice, and irrigation technology and equipment. It informs planting, controls pivots, and provides crop monitoring — including irrigation recommendations and updates — from laptops or phones.

Monitoring crops for moisture use enables greater efficiency than soil sensing alone. In California, Nichol saw an 800 pound-per-acre difference in almond yields field-to-field when he gave trees moisture as needed instead of using a flat rate across the operation. He began using an irrigation decision support tool from Phytech in 2016 to make these changes.

The Phytech sensor-based system works directly on the plant, informing operators about plant health and water needs based on moisture uptake.

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Step one is increasing monitoring to understand what is actually being put out on the field.

Dayna Gross Sustainability Manager of Partnership and Programs
at Syngenta North America

Comparing two orchards where he used the Phytech technology, Nichol found that the one he expected to produce higher yields was demanding 20% less water than the other. It turned out that due to pest pressure, the orchard was not performing as well as usual. By giving the trees what the monitors indicated was needed, he saved critical water resources.

“If I was only looking at the soil moisture probes, I would have over-irrigated for sure,” he says. “Without that feedback, we would have wasted water and money.” Smart water resource allocation not only reduces costs, but it also means farmers, ranchers and orchard operators are being more sustainable.

“What’s exciting as we start using more technologies for irrigation is creating greater efficiencies,” says Wall. “If we reduce pumping because we see that we’re using too much water, we save energy and water consumption costs while maintaining productivity. On top of that, we benefit aquifers and the environment overall. It’s a win-win.”

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Many tree nut and citrus growers recently watched their margins erode due to increasing input costs, questionable water availability and lackluster crop prices. Phytophthora root rot, which can reduce tree efficiency and yield potential, puts further pressure on their bottom lines.

“Here in California, growers are running on razor-thin profits,” says Garrett Gilcrease, Syngenta agronomy service representative based in Hanford, California. “Even a minor Phytophthora infestation can cost thousands of dollars a year.”

In Florida, citrus producers face added challenges from Diaprepes root weevils and Huanglongbing (HLB), or citrus greening, both of which damage tree roots.

“When you combine HLB, which can cause major root loss, with Diaprepes root weevil and Phytophthora, it’s a recipe for tree loss,” says Zach Langford, Syngenta sales representative based in Lake Wales, Florida.

Get Ahead of Phytophthora

Gilcrease and Langford say growers can get ahead of Phytophthora root rot with an integrated approach that includes proper irrigation management, resistant rootstocks, soil and root sampling, and fungicide treatments, if warranted.

A water mold, Phytophthora thrives under wet conditions, infecting tree roots and reducing their ability to pull water and nutrients from the soil.

Gilcrease says the pathogen was common when California orchards were flood irrigated. It waned as growers converted to pressurized irrigation systems and began planting on berms. But Phytophthora root rot resurged recently because drip and micro-sprinklers only wet the top foot or so of the soil surface, he says, noting that the key to preventing the disease is proper irrigation management. This includes not overwatering, especially in the spring before trees have fully leafed out and use less water. Growers also should avoid soil compaction and use practices that aid water infiltration.

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Even a minor Phytophthora infestation can cost thousands of dollars a year.

Garrett Gilcrease Agronomy Service Representative at Syngenta

As a soilborne pathogen, Phytophthora may infest nut and citrus tree roots years before above-ground symptoms appear. Tree health declines as the infection progresses, causing reduced fruit set, poor vegetative growth, early leaf drop and even tree death.

Take Advantage of Free Soil Programs

Langford and Gilcrease recommend scouting and soil sampling to catch issues early. Syngenta offers a Soil Pathogen Assessment (SPA) program to gauge Phytophthora propagules in California and Arizona orchards. In Florida, Syngenta provides the similar Citrus Soil Assay program.

Charlie McKee, a Florida-based citrus producer in Lake Wales and production manager with Donley & Myers Grove Caretaking, says he has used the Citrus Soil Assay program for 10 to 15 years. It provides information on his own groves and gives him statewide data about citrus tree health.

“It helps you see what’s going on with the root mass and propagules, so you can get the best timing for treatment,” says McKee. “It helps maximize your dollar as much as possible.”

In California and Arizona, Gilcrease says the SPA program began about 10 years ago for citrus growers. It has since expanded into tree nuts. Each year, Syngenta representatives in the two states collect about 1,200 samples for testing. They initially collected only soil samples, which were assayed for Phytophthora propagules ― a type of vegetative reproductive body. If a Phytophthora species wasn’t active at the time of sampling however, lab soil tests often didn’t detect them. Gilcrease says Syngenta representatives now collect soil as well as root samples. As part of pathogen assessment, the laboratory runs ELISA (Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay) tests on roots to detect a protein unique to Phytophthora.

Langford says he also looks at the disease load metric, which is a treatment threshold based on the number of propagules found in the soil, when making treatment recommendations.

“This metric adds another layer of information to help make the best recommendation,” Langford says.

Develop a Resistance Management Program

When lab results warrant a fungicide treatment, Gilcrease and Langford say growers have a handful of options they can rotate for resistance management. Phosphorous acid is a Group 33 fungicide also widely used as a fertilizer. According to University of California – Riverside (UCR) studies, several Phytophthora species have developed resistance or reduced sensitivity as a result.

Ridomil Gold® SL fungicide, a Group 4 soil-applied fungicide from Syngenta, protects trees from soilborne oomycete diseases, including Phytophthora root rot. It is injected through micro-sprinkler or drip systems.

Ridomil Gold GR fungicide is a soil-incorporated granular formulation. The active ingredient in both Ridomil Gold GR and Ridomil Gold SL products ― mefenoxam ― builds up around roots stopping current and preventing future infections.

And Orondis® fungicide — a Group 49 soil-applied fungicide also from Syngenta — controls 11 Phytophthora species, according to UCR trials*. Injected through micro-sprinkler or drip systems and using oxathiapiprolin as its active ingredient, Orondis reduces soil propagules and moves systemically within the tree to improve tree vigor and health.

For more information about the Soil Pathogen Assessment or Citrus Soil Assay programs, contact your local Syngenta representative.

*https://rd.almondboard.com/files/2019%20%20PATH15%20AdaskavegBrowne-Disease%202.pdf

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