Factors Influencing the Adoption of Scab Control Practices in Small Grains in North Dakota and Minnesota.

Fusarium head blight (scab) became a serious constraint to small-grain production in eastern North Dakota and northwestern Minnesota in the early 1990s.  By the early 2000s, components of an integrated approach were identified that reduced losses.  In 2009, a survey was given to producers attending a wheat production workshop to determine the level of adoption of various scab control strategies and where they obtained the information they used to manage scab.  Of the 528 respondents, more than 60% had adopted the use of tolerant varieties, fungicides applied at heading, and crop rotation.  The decision on whether to apply fungicide was largely based on the perceived likelihood of disease development by the growers themselves.  Less than 20% used a disease forecasting model available through the internet, or guidance from crop consultants to help make that decision.  Grower reported that the most important sources of information on scab control were extension meetings, crop consultants, articles in farm magazines and newspapers, and other extension publications.  Less than 15% of the farmers considered the internet, other farmers, and personnel at the local elevator to be important sources of information on scab control.  These data suggest that for a new production challenge with relatively complex management solutions like scab in wheat, conventional grower meetings and publications as well as the popular press are highly valuable sources of information and should be the foundation for extension programs.  Internet based information and decision tools are not regularly accessed and should be use only to augment foundational activities.