Manganese deficient wheat
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EmailEditor’s note: This article is from the archives of the MSU Crop Advisory Team Alerts. Check the label of any pesticide referenced to ensure your use is included.
There have been few reports of manganese (Mn) deficient wheat growing on soils with pH above 7.0. Manganese deficient wheat has a general yellow-green appearance from a distance with interval yellow-green pin-stripping on the leaves. See figure 10 in MSU Extension Bulletin E-486. The plants may also appear moisture stressed even though there is adequate soil moisture. Manganese deficiency can be corrected by spraying the foliage with 1 to 2 pounds actual Mn per acre, depending on the severity of the deficiency. Manganese sulfate is the most effective material to use. Chelated or sequestered materials can also be used, but limit the amount applied with these two materials in any one application to 1 pound per acre.
Manganese availability in the soil decreases significantly as the soil pH increases. Manganese deficiency is most likely to occur on high organic matter soils with a pH above 6.5, on acid mineral soils that are lime to soil pH 6.5 or above, and on mineral soils with pH above 7.0. However, Mn deficiency will not occur on all mineral soils with a pH above 7.0. Mineral soils that are naturally alkaline (pH above 7.0) frequently contain adequate available Mn so a deficiency does not occur.
