How to Manage for Goss's Bacterial Wilt

Growers have a few options, such as rotating crops, planting high-tolerant varieties.

Paula Mohr

Published: Nov 11, 2010

Goss's Bacterial Wilt, a disease that kills plants within weeks of infection and causes up to 50% yield loss in severe epidemics, hit Minnesota corn fields this past season.

A "perfect storm" of events - a lot of corn acres, corn-on-corn, less tillage last fall, this season's weather conditions - all helped contribute to the spread of the disease. Because it's bacterial and remains in the soil, fungicides won't suppress it. Farmers will have to tweak crop management to control the disease. Here are some tips on Goss's wilt control from Gary Prescher, Syngenta field agronomist, Delavan:

Rotation. Add a second or third crop to break the disease cycle.

Tillage. This might be somewhat helpful, but you can't control your neighbor's crop management practices. Debris can blow in from neighboring fields.

Early season weed control. Weeds aren't a major driver in the disease. However, some foxtail and grass are hosts for Goss's Wilt so they may impact the speed of development.

Hybrid selection. If you have concerns about the disease in corn-on-corn situations, select hybrids that are locally adapted and have the highest tolerance levels for Goss's Wilt.

Since Goss's Wilt is a bacterial infection, a fungicide would not suppress it. However, if you do use fungicides for fungal diseases, you will have healthier, tougher plants that will be better able to handle other diseases.

Corn leaf infected by Gosss bacterial wilt. (Purdue University, photo/Kiersten Wise)

Corn leaf infected by Goss's bacterial wilt. (Purdue University, photo/Kiersten Wise)

The disease was confirmed in many fields across the Midwest. It is often misdiagnosed as drought stress or other foliar diseases, especially in areas where it is not typically prevalent.

Symptoms of Goss's Wilt include gray to tan lesions on the leaves that follow the leaf veins with small dark green or black "freckles" within the infections. Another tell-tale sign is a glossy appearance to the affected leaves, due to bacterial exudates.