Fungicide Timing Solution taking guesswork out of disease management

JOHNSTON, Iowa — Pioneer launched its new Fungicide Timing Solution this year, an integrated approach designed to help corn growers make more confident, data-driven fungicide application decisions and protect yield potential.

Each season, growers face significant uncertainty when managing foliar disease. Shifting agronomic conditions and rapidly changing disease pressure make fungicide application timing decisions difficult.

A mistimed application can reduce efficacy, yield and return on investment.

“Our Fungicide Timing Solution is one of our newest solutions that we rolled out this year,” said Trenton Brisby, Pioneer agronomy innovation marketing manager. “We’re helping farmers know when and where to apply fungicide. Every year is different.

“Farmers have a lot of variables they have to deal with, when to apply, what diseases are coming and when. So, really what it is is a prediction AI machine learning model.

“Three components of it are combining Pioneer seed genetics, which already has really key resistance to key diseases, the fungicide timing model tool and then Forcivo fungicide component with three modes of action.”

Leverages Data Science

Powered by data science and agronomic expertise, the Fungicide Timing tool is a digital solution that continuously evaluates field-specific disease risk throughout the growing season.

It integrates localized weather, field conditions, management practices and hybrid disease tolerance to provide growers with clear, actionable guidance on when and where fungicide applications are most likely to deliver efficacy and yield potential.

“The Fungicide Timing tool uses advanced data science and AI analytics to predict disease onset and identify the optimal spray window based on specific field conditions,” said Brisby at the recent Corteva Media Day.

“If we can get ahead of the game and be proactive versus reactive, what we’re finding is that we’re delivering a 5-bushel yield advantage for growers that are just adjusting the timing of when they spray and a 10-bushel yield advantage versus somebody that has an untreated check.

“At a time when every application must deliver a positive return, Corteva is offering a precision agriculture solution that helps growers better manage disease risk and maximize ROI potential.”

The new tool is currently being utilized on over 4 million acres throughout the United States, primarily in the Midwest, with Pioneer sales representatives providing an integral role with growers.

“We’ve got a dashboard that they can look at and understand which fields we’re monitoring, which fields they’re going spray soon, which fields they’re going to spray now. When we’re in a ‘spray soon,’ you have about a 7- to 10-day window of going out there to spray,” Brisby said.

“When we get into ‘spray now,’ you got about a week window that is the right time to spray, and that’s what’s delivering that 5- or 10-bushel yield advantage.”

Research Culmination

The Fungicide Timing program is the culmination of over seven years of research that included utilizing AI machine learning and field trails throughout the Midwest.

“We pride ourselves in innovation and making sure we’re doing stuff right,” Brisby said. “Last year was probably one of the biggest disease years that we’ve had in well over a decade, if not longer, and so being able to predict that onset of disease like northern corn leaf blight and gray leaf spot was pretty instrumental.”

Fungicide Trend

There has been a trend in some locales where fungicide has become a regular part of some farmers’ management plan, regardless of disease pressure, because of the other crop health benefits that are touted.

However, in recent times with extremely tight budgets, this new tool can provide a cost savings.

“A big part of what we’re trying to do is we’re help them with the when and where. They still have to have those local conversations with their agronomist, with their Pioneer dealer. Is it right? Is it not right? I think of the disease maps we put out there as kind of like here’s what we see coming. It’s a nice way to see it, and then when you get down to the field level, now we’re telling them when and where to spray,” Brisby said.

“There’s still a lot of great benefits using Forcivo fungicide and other Corteva fungicides. I think that’s huge, there’s always opportunities, and it’s up to the grower to kind of have that risk mitigation of what we also see out of a fungicide from a plant health perspective.

“Years like this where it’s been really hot, 90-degree weather, you get stomata control, helping test weight, finish that crop out, and so I think it’s just really good discussions that our Pioneer agencies have with growers as far as what’s right for you for this year.

“Being able to have a tool like this to be able to help growers understand what’s coming in has been phenomenal.

“When you combine elite Pioneer genetics for key diseases, you combine Forcivo fungicide as our newest three-mode-of-action product, and now a prediction tool with fungicide timing, how we’re managing disease is changing, and we’re using AI to do it. The way we manage disease changes today.”

The Fungicide Timing Solution is now available to qualifying Pioneer customers who use a Corteva fungicide purchased through their local retailer.