You can bet if you’re a grower here in the Mid-atlantic, you’ve seen your share of corn diseases.

Ear rots or molds are usually most problematic when cool, wet conditions occur during silking and early grain development, when the ears are most susceptible to fungal infection.

Now is the time to think about controlling summer annual weeds prior to seed set in cropping situations where this is possible.

At least one soybean field in the Jackson Purchase area has suffered from mite damage.

The federal "pollution diet" imposed on Virginia and other bay states is supposed to reduce the phosphorus, nitrogen and sediment dumped into the Chesapeake Bay and its feeder rivers. Computer models based on a suite of reduction practices estimate that diet is mostly working. But real-world monitoring data shows a different story, according to the Environmental Integrity Project, a nonprofit anti-pollution group based in Washington.

Although insect pest problems have been relatively minor this year, farmers should stay vigilant and continue to scout corn and soybean.

Correcting acid soil conditions through the application of lime can have a significant impact on crop yields, especially with alfalfa. Liming is one of the most essential, but often overlooked, management decisions a producer can make.

A journal article published recently (July 2014) confirms that rotation-resistant and rotation-susceptible western corn rootworms are affected by Bt root tissue in a similar fashion.

As early corn comes to market in July, growers are reminded that timing counts for a lot when it comes to planting corn. That's why Mississippi State University scientists are researching the effects of planting date, plant population and hybrid selection on field corn yields.

Summer is in full swing. Soybeans are beginning to bloom, corn is tasseling and sunflowers will start to show their flashy yellow flowers soon.