Welcome back to another PCT Short. I’m Jonah Johnson. Across Ohio, we’ve been seeing quite a prevalence of ear molds this year two of the molds specifically that we’ve seen more prevalence of is Gibberella Ear Mold and then Fusarium Ear Mold. Both of these cause mycotoxins and we need to manage those appropriately once we’ve harvested those and take notes of where you may have these ear mold, especially if you have a high prevalence of those in your field.

First of all, Gibberella Ear Mold, it’s an ear mold that also causes Fusarium Head Scab in wheat or cause mycotoxins there as well. This is why we do not recommend having wheat planted after corn or vice versa. It’s typically a pinkish mold that forms on the tip of the ear. If you have hybrids that have tight husks, a lot of upright ears, a lot of water vector that it likes cool and humid conditions.

It is vectored through the silk channels typically. Thinking back to your weather conditions during pollination in early grain fill, that’s what could have vectored that disease. Now, on the flip side, Fusarium ear molds we’re seeing more of this year. This is typically vectored in any time you have insect feeding that penetrates through that husk covering on the ear, it can get in the tips of that.

It also can be vectored through the silk channels down the tip of the ear. But a lot of times when you see that, you’ll see in the images that you’ll have erratic expressions of those kernels looking pinkish white, and then you’ll get a fluffy mold at the tip of the ear as well. And so both these, again, can cause mycotoxins.

Once you harvest those, you want to get that grain dried down to 15% or a little less and cool down as fast as you can. And if preferably if you have hot spots in your fields and you have a lot of that grain, you want to try to isolate that in the bin. But if that’s not possible, get that grain condition quickly and then to keep that that disease from festering inside your bin.

For more on ear molds or any of the topics we discussed today, feel free to inquire here.