Syngenta Thrive - 2Q/2013 - 20

Nurturing
Nature

University trials and real-field experiences during
the 2012 drought show fungicides do more than
control disease. | By Susan Fisher

W

hen retailer Brock Skov advises growers to apply Quilt Xcel®
fungicide to their crops, he knows they will get more than just
excellent disease control. He also knows they will get healthier,
heartier plants that can withstand the punches Mother Nature may
deliver throughout the season.
“Quilt Xcel offers both curative and preventive disease control and
provides physiological benefits,” says Skov, who works at Central Valley
Co-op in Hayfield, Minn. “We have also seen nice yield results from it—
on average a 10- to 15-acre boost—even during the 2012 drought.”
Caution When Dry
Because fungal problems are usually associated with moisture,
the notion of applying a fungicide when conditions are dry seems
counterintuitive, says Eric Tedford, Ph.D, Syngenta technical product
lead. “However, the fact remains that growers and retailers are
seeing yield benefits from certain fungicides under dry conditions.”
The 2012 season was an ideal time to test the practice, as much
of the country’s farmland struggled under drought. After walking
across many fields in the Corn Belt, Tedford saw firsthand some
of the benefits that growers who used fungicides experienced,
including Dave Keffeler of Remsen, Iowa.
“I had a lot of farmers and relatives asking me if they should spend
the money to apply fungicides last year,” says Keffeler, who is also a
seed dealer. “We ended up investing in fungicide applications on our

Corn Yield Differences
in Drought Conditions*

101.1 Bu/A

69.25 Bu/A
UNTreaTed

TreaTed wiTh QUilT xcel
*Source: Syngenta, 2012

18 · thrive · 2Q/13
Syngenta Thrive - 2Q/2013

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