Integrated management of ear rot and associated mycotoxin contamination of corn in Michigan
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EmailManinder Singh, an assistant professor in the MSU Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, looked at ways to combat ear rot in corn silage.
Researcher: Maninder Singh
Awarded: $149,978
Leveraged: $65,000
Ear rot infection in Michigan corn is a growing problem, partly due to changing climate and the movement of western bean cutworm, a corn pest, into the Great Lakes region. Until now, there has been minimal research efforts on understanding the consequences of various management strategies on ear rot and mycotoxin contamination, especially in corn silage where such issues can go unnoticed due to lack of testing.
Maninder Singh, an assistant professor in the MSU Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, used M-AAA funding to investigate this challenge. The project focused on evaluating the impacts of various field management strategies such as hybrid selection (including Bt and non Bt hybrids), fungicide application, planting and harvest timing, and planting density on ear rot infection and associated mycotoxin contamination under various geographical locations in Michigan.
Understanding the consequences of these practices on ear rot and mycotoxin accumulation is important in efforts to minimize mycotoxin-related health and production issues in dairy cattle and other animals, as well as development of ear rot and mycotoxin accumulation predictive models.
As a result of the project, researchers gained an improved understanding of factors contributing to mycotoxin accumulation in corn and severity of spread across the state. Outreach efforts generated awareness on this issue in animal diet and provided growers with information on management strategies that can minimize mycotoxin accumulation while corn is growing in the field. These include early planting, optimal seeding rate, selection of functional insect protection traits in hybrid selection, scouting for disease and insect incidence, and fungicide application based on various risk factors. Data has shown that an integrated management approach is needed to minimize mycotoxin accumulation in corn.
Overall, this research helped determine the impacts of various in-field strategies on mycotoxin accumulation and overall silage quality to help growers determine best management practices to minimize toxin levels in the feed, improve health and production issues in cattle, and increase farm profitability.
