When soybean rust (Phakopsora pachyrhizi)
was identified in the late fall of 2004, Extension specialists from several
disciplines organized eleven intensive training sessions across the state to
address the fears and concerns of soybean rust. The vast majority of
respondents (99%) said that the meetings enhanced their understanding of
soybean rust with sufficient information such that 79% of the respondents
planned to change some of their intended management practices. About 97% of the
respondents planned to scout their fields for soybean rust, 15% planned to hire
scouts and the majority planned to spray a fungicide only after scouting.
County extension agents responded that 47% of the farmers in their counties
were planning to spray for soybean rust at the beginning of the 2005 soybean
season. These farmers represented 431,000 acres in the reporting counties.
Based on their estimates, only 8% of the farmers actually sprayed a fungicide
on 90,955 acres, representing 10% of the total acreage. Of those that sprayed a
fungicide, only 6% sprayed because of soybean rust alone, while the remainder
sprayed for other reasons in addition to rust. Assuming that soybean fungicides
would cost $18.00 per acre to apply, these farmers saved $6,120,000 in
fungicide costs by not spraying.