Fall Walk is Great Time to Collect SCN Soil Samples

 

Once harvest is completed, a very productive way to enjoy the fall weather is to collect soil samples for soybean cyst nematode (SCN).

In the 1990s and much of the past decade, fall soil sampling for SCN was strongly recommended as a way to scout fields for the presence of this pest. If fields have not yet been tested for SCN, soil samples should be collected for this purpose. But many fields infested with SCN in Iowa likely have already been discovered.

Another reason to collect soil samples for SCN in the fall is to determine SCN egg population densities (numbers). These numbers will be useful for comparison when soil samples are collected again sometime in the future. Growers and agronomists are advised to take soil samples every six to eight years to assess SCN population densities as a check that management efforts are adequately controlling the nematode. Doing this is important because many SCN populations in Iowa and throughout the Midwest are developing increased ability to reproduce on the most common type or source of SCN resistance, called PI 88788. The key to profitable long-term soybean production in SCN-infested fields is to prevent SCN population densities from increasing.

Comparing results of soil samples collected six to eight years apart requires good record keeping and also consistent soil sample collection methods. Accurate and detailed notes of when and how samples were collected are needed so the same methods can be used in future years. Details should include the specific areas of fields that are sampled, the number of cores that are collected and their depth, the specific sampling date, whether samples are collected before or after a soybean or other crop, and which laboratory processes the samples.