Tar spot was found in all 92 Indiana counties in 2024. In Southern Indiana, it moved in early and aggressively.
“And I think that caught a lot of people off guard,” says Madison Wozniak, Technical Service Manager for FMC. “Historically, we’re choosing products based on southern rust performance. We’re not really thinking heavily about tar spot, because, generally, they see it move in late in September, at that point, not influencing grain yield significantly. They didn’t think they were going to have to manage tar spot the same way guys in the northern part of the state did, and I think that’s going to influence decision making in 2025.”
Wozniak says if you’re looking for the right fungicide to help battle tar spot, FMC has what you’re looking for.
“We just launched a product in 2024, Adastrio® fungicide. It’s a foliar fungicide. Three modes of action are represented, and it’s going to be strong against tar spot, southern rust, northern corn leaf blight, and gray leaf spot. So, all of the diseases that could blight your farm operation, we’ve got you covered.”
Of course, fungicide timing is everything.
“If we can make that application around R2/R3, it seems to be paying off. So, one of the tools that you could employ if you’re worried about other diseases that move in earlier than we expect to see tar spot, there are other management strategies that we can employ, such as a Xyway® fungicide, that can help hold off some of those early onset diseases like gray leaf spot, northern corn leaf blight, and also manage our stock and crown diseases.”
Hear more in the full HAT interview with FMC’s Wozniak below.
