An Alfalfa Disease Calendar

The following calendar provides producers and agricultural professionals with insights that may improve alfalfa production in several ways. First, knowing when to expect certain diseases improves one\u27s ability to diagnose disease problems, which is a fundamental foundation for disease management. The many UK Extension Service publications on alfalfa as well as publications like the Alfalfa Analyst and the Compendium of Alfalfa Diseases, all are useful for diagnosis, but none provides a precise calendar of when to expect activity of alfalfa diseases in Kentucky. An alfalfa disease calendar can also provide occasional insights into timely management practices. For example, being able to recognize when leaf spots are attacking your crop helps aid in making the decision to harvest promptly to avoid losses in yield and quality. As another example, recognizing when Aphanomyces root rot has been active on a farm can help guide a producer to selecting a resistant variety in the future. Finally, having a better understanding of disease dynamics in alfalfa helps the producer and agricultural professional to better develop and customize alfalfa production systems suited to the unique circumstances on each farm. In the calendar below, each month is represented by two sections: early to mid-month and mid- to late month. Each of these can be read as stand-alone sections, without reference to other sections of the calendar. Thus, readers can use only those sections needed for any given time of year

Alfalfa Disease Management

Alfalfa can be a vigorous and productive forage crop for Kentucky farmers. Like all farm crops, however, alfalfa is subject to infectious diseases that can limit forage production. Managing these diseases is an important part of economical alfalfa production

Fundamental Principles of Plant Pathology for Agricultural Producers

All crop plants produced in Kentucky have the potential to become diseased under certain conditions. Diseases of crops can affect yield and/or quality of the harvested commodity. This can impact profitability and increase the risks of farming. A plant is diseased when it is affected by some agent that interferes with its normal development. Some disorders are caused by noninfectious factors, such as temperature extremes or nutrient deficiencies. However, this publication focuses on diseases caused by infectious microorganisms. Diseased plants exhibit a variety of symptoms. These can include stunting, yellowing, wilting, twisting, reddening, browning, blighting, root rot, fruit rot, or other abnormalities. Accurate diagnosis is important in order to effectively control a plant disease. Diagnosis is an art as well as a science, and experience is important. Until a disease is properly diagnosed, a farmer may waste time and money trying to correct a problem with an unknown cause. Once a disease is diagnosed, appropriate control practices can be selected. Your local Extension agent can provide information on identification and management of crop diseases

Genetic Engineering and Sustainable Crop Disease Management: Opportunities for Case-by-Case Decision-Making

Genetic engineering (GE) offers an expanding array of strategies for enhancing disease resistance of crop plants in sustainable ways, including the potential for reduced pesticide usage. Certain GE applications involve transgenesis, in some cases creating a metabolic pathway novel to the GE crop. In other cases, only cisgenessis is employed. In yet other cases, engineered genetic changes can be so minimal as to be indistinguishable from natural mutations. Thus, GE crops vary substantially and should be evaluated for risks, benefits, and social considerations on a case-by-case basis. Deployment of GE traits should be with an eye towards long-term sustainability; several options are discussed. Selected risks and concerns of GE are also considered, along with genome editing, a technology that greatly expands the capacity of molecular biologists to make more precise and targeted genetic edits. While GE is merely a suite of tools to supplement other breeding techniques, if wisely used, certain GE tools and applications can contribute to sustainability goals

Welfare, politiche pubbliche e società civile. Un'analisi dell'applicazione del'accesso civico generalizzato (Foia) in Italia

The purpose of this article is an investigation on the use of the so-called Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) in Italy. A FOIA law was enacted in Italy in 2016 and became operational in 2017. In particular, by using different datasets, we try to correlate the use of FOIA by associations and organizations of civil society to their actions either as producers of social cohesion or as actors of welfare initiatives. Access to information, by increasing information capital of actors, enables the management of complexity

Managing Alfalfa Diseases

Diseases of alfalfa can limit productivity of this valuable forage crop. Alfalfa diseases can reduce forage yield, reduce forage quality, and decrease stand persistence. The effects of diseases can be dramatic, such as sudden stand loss due to Sclerotinia crown and stem rot. Often, the effects of alfalfa diseases are more subtle but are no less important. For example, alfalfa plants with Phytophthora root rot sometimes regrow slowly after cutting, resulting in a stunted stand showing no other obvious symptoms of disease. Like most crop diseases, alfalfa diseases are most effectively managed by integrating as many control measures as practical. This report will provide an overview of several timely topics relative to alfalfa disease management

Kentucky Plant Disease Management Guide for Forage Legumes

This guide contains information on the biology and management of the most important diseases of forage legumes in Kentucky. Fundamental information on symptoms, disease cycle, and management is provided. For some diseases, more extensive information on biology and management is also available in other Extension publications. Additional sources of information are listed under individual diseases. Disease management in forage legumes relies heavily on using disease-resistant varieties and employing sound agronomic practices. It is important to integrate both of these strategies into a comprehensive disease management program. Failure to consider one or the other will compromise the success of your efforts. The appropriate use of pesticides sometimes plays a significant role in managing certain diseases, but it is secondary to sound cultural practices and proper variety selection. Resistance to one or more diseases is often incorporated into modern crop varieties. Unfortunately, resistance is not available for some diseases. However, when available, disease resistance is often the foundation for economical disease control

Genetically Engineered Crops: Emerging Opportunities

Biotechnology is “any technological application that uses biological systems, living organisms, or derivatives thereof, to make or modify products or processes for specific use.” This definition encompasses many, many applications, including traditional ones such as fermentation of alcoholic beverages. In certain biotech crops, their genetic material (DNA) has been purposefully manipulated in the laboratory. These genetically engineered crops are often called “GMOs,” an acronym for “genetically modified organisms.” These GMOs are the focus of this publication

A Solution to Some Spring-Seeded Alfalfa Problems

One of the most important assignments I received when I assumed this position in 1990 was to address the question, What is the cause of seeding failure when alfalfa is spring-seeded into soils that remain wet after seeding? Six years of laboratory and field work have finally borne fruit. Based on our research, we can confidently present Kentucky alfalfa producers with three conclusions and a recommendation

Is Ridomil Recommended When Seeding Alfalfa?

Ridomil 2E® fungicide received a federal label in 1991 for control of seedling diseases of alfalfa caused by Pythium and Phytophthora fungi. Pythium fungi are widespread in Kentucky soils but can be controlled with Apron® seed treatment. Phytophthora is less common in Kentucky soils. Where present, Phytophthora can usually be controlled with a combination of resistant varieties and Apron seed treatment. Occasionally, yield increases may be observed using Ridomil in fields highly infested with Phytophthora. However, broadcast applications of Ridomil at seeding are not recommended for most alfalfa fields in Kentucky