What is Red Crown Rot

By Dusty Sonnenberg, CCA, Field Leader, a project of the Ohio Soybean Council and Soybean Check-off

Red Crown Rot is an emerging disease that has not been detected in Ohio yet; but has been found in neighboring states. Dr. Carl Bradley, Extension Plant Pathologist from the University of Kentucky says Red Crown Rot is not a new disease, but it is a new disease in some states. “Red Crown Rot is caused by a fungus called Calonectria ilicicola. That fungus lives in the soil. It is what we call a soil borne pathogen,” said Bradley. “This pathogen has a very extensive list of host plants, which means that there are other genera of plants that this pathogen can infect, in addition to soybeans. It is interesting to note that on some of these other hosts it may not cause a root rot or crown rot. It may cause a leaf spot, so it it’s kind of diverse in the symptoms that it can cause on these different hosts as well.”… Continue reading