COLUMBIA, Mo. – Those attending the July 10 University of Missouri Crop and Pest Management Field Day in Columbia can bring plants for early-season disease diagnosis.

Peng Tian, director of the MU Plant Diagnostic Clinic, will be on hand to accept samples. “This is a great opportunity for corn, soybean and wheat growers to receive free diagnostic testing for plant health issues resulting from insect, pathogens, weeds, environmental stress or other damage,” said Tian. “Proper diagnosis leads to proper treatment.”

Video: Peng Tian explains how to take samples for testing.

He also will be available to review digital photos of plant samples. If you bring photos on an electronic device, he recommends bringing 4-6 sharply focused photos per sample. “The more pictures you provide, the better,” he says. Include all parts of the plant and take photos from different distances.

Tian said this is a great opportunity for farmers to check their crops for early-season crown and root rot diseases of soybean and foliar diseases of both corn and soybean, as well as other diseases.

The Plant Diagnostic Clinic on the MU campus handles all types of sample material from home lawns, trees, vegetables, fruits, flower gardens and houseplants as well as commercial agronomic and horticultural crops. In addition to identifying the problems, the diagnostic clinic provides research-based recommendations in a written report.

At the field day, Tian and MU Extension specialists and researchers will cover a wide range of topics of interest to crop producers at MU’s Bradford Research Farm in Columbia. Details and registration. For more information, contact Heather Bowden at nicholshn@missouri.edu or 573-882-4303.

MU Bradford Research Farm is 8 miles east of Columbia at 4968 Rangeline Road. Registration begins at 8 a.m.

Continuing education units will be awarded for certified crop advisers.