When unseen nematodes chew their way into corn seedlings’ roots, early season hopes fade into stunted crop growth and limited yield potential. Until now, frustrated farmers have had limited options to fight back. Put on your boxing gloves, folks. Coming in 2024, there’s a brand new and powerful product ready to deliver the knockout punch to nematodes.
Next year, Acceleron will be offering farmers a brand-new generation of nematode protection: the first ever dual mode of action chemistry and biological product for corn. The product, called Acceleron N-314 Seed Treatment and offered in Bayer’s Acceleron Elite package, brings together the ultra-effective nematicide Fluopyram with proven biological Bacillus firmus for broad spectrum efficacy against nematodes all season long. Fluopyram causes mortality at all stages of the nematode lifecycle. Meanwhile, bacteria based Votivo not only creates a living barrier to protect the corn plant from nematode attack, it also supports enhanced plant health. Acceleron N-314 Seed Treatment is the only true systemic nematocidal seed treatment available for corn.
Though there are multiple kinds of seedling issues that can negatively impact a growing crop, nematodes are the costliest and most consistent driver of seedling vigour issues leading to yield loss in US corn production. Despite their microscopic size, they do huge damage: between 2012 and 2022, nematodes caused an average annual loss of 71 million bushels of US corn, more than twice as much as root rots and about a third more than seedling blights.
Do you have nematodes attacking your crop? The short answer is yes: nematodes exist everywhere. The bigger question is: are they causing costly damage? Quite possibly, and perhaps without you realising. Because symptoms are similar to various other seedling limiters, nematode damage is often misidentified as herbicide or fertilizer injury, insect feeding, soil compaction, drought and more. Even more problematic, nematode-induced yield loss can sometimes occur without any above-ground symptoms at all.
Step one: scout. Above-ground, early season symptoms can include wilting, yellowing and stunted growth. Later season symptoms can include weak growth, sickly-looking plants, uneven tasseling and poor ear development. Below ground, symptoms include swollen roots, a lack of fine roots, minimal root branching, and necrotic lesions. Often, feeding occurs right at the root’s growth point, resulting in stunting. Severe damage can be seen as short, swollen, ‘stubby roots’.
Step two: fight back with integrated management: adequate fertility, effective host weed control, appropriate rotation, and an Acceleron offering. Acceleron N-314 Seed Treatment will be launched in corn through Bayer-owned seed brand products containing VT4PRO with RNAi Technology and SmartStax PRO with RNAi Technology for MY24. It will be incorporated into the broader corn portfolio in the future.
