Rebecca Vittetoe
Rebecca Vittetoe is an extension field agronomist in east central Iowa. Educational programs are available for farmers, agribusiness, pesticide applicators, and certified crop advisors.
Areas of expertise include agronomy, field crop production and management of corn, soybeans, and IPM/crop scouting. Vittetoe joined Iowa State University Extension and Outreach in April of 2015.
Subscribe to the Southeast/South-central Iowa Crop Connection newsletter for current topics and agriculture events in the area.
Subscribe to RSS FeedThe spotty rain and dry weather saga continues in many parts of the state. The U.S. Drought Monitor has just over 47% of the state as abnormally dry and 16% of the state in a moderate drought.
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Parts of the state are still quite dry and could use some much needed rain. Some of these areas did receive some much needed rain Monday night (July 10)/early Tuesday morning (July 11). Well some areas of the state are very dry other areas have been hit hard with storms, with the most recent...
Farmers, ag retailers, and certified crop advisers gathered at the Southeast Research and Demonstration Farm on June 22 for the research farm association’s annual spring field day. Myron Rees, farm superintendent, kicked off the field day by sharing a farm and crop update with everyone. Some...
Despite June typically being one of the wettest months of the year, it is ending to be much drier than normal across much of the state. Besides drier conditions, other common issues showing up in Iowa crop fields include weed management concerns, herbicide drift, nutrient deficiencies, and...
Some much needed rain fell across parts of the state last week, but with the rain came some strong winds and hail in parts of the state. Other areas could still use some rain. Iowa State...
The USDA Weekly Crop Progress Report showed that Iowa's corn crop is 96% emerged and gave Iowa’s corn crops a 77% good to excellent rating. Soybean...
The USDA Weekly Crop Progress Report showed that Iowa's corn crop is 90% emerged and gave Iowa’s corn crops a 77% good/excellent rating. Soybean planting...
Armyworm feeding has been observed in several fields in northeast and southeast Iowa. Most of the fields with the feeding had cereal rye planted last fall and were terminated this spring.
Now is the time to be scouting for armyworms. Look for feeding on leaves....
Currently 92% of Iowa’s corn crop has been planted and 62% of the soybean crop according to Monday’s USDA Crop Progress Report. However, the wet weather...
Cooler and wetter conditions can effect corn germination and emergence, but they can also provide a favorable environment for seedling diseases.
One research study being conducted by ISU is taking a closer look at seedling diseases in corn. The goals of the...
#Plant17 is progressing across Iowa. Following a period of cooler and wetter weather, most farmers have been able to get back in the fields over the weekend and either resume or start planting. According to Monday’s USDA Crop Progress report, Iowa had 52% corn planted and 19% of soybeans for the...
Fall is a great time to take soil samples and test the soil to see where the nutrient levels are. The results of soil tests can help make critical management decisions for the next growing season. Soil testing starts with the soil sample. The small sample of soil collected serves as the basis...
The weather forecast is calling for temperatures to dip close to freezing tonight (10/12/16) in south central/southeast Iowa, which could mean that we may see a light frost. What does...
On Sept. 8, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach hosted a fall field day at the ISU Southeast Research and Demonstration Farm near Crawfordsville, Iowa.
Iowa State University Extension and Outreach field agronomists report crop conditions in south central, southeast, and east central Iowa.
Mark you your calendars for the Southeast Research and Demonstration Farm's Fall Field Day, which is set for September 8. Registration will begin at 1 p.m. with the tour starting at 1:30 p.m.
The featured stops for this year's field day include a presentation on...
Typically anthracnose is a disease associated with corn as a leaf blight or stalk rot, or ...
Spider mites the end of June or first part of July? Our hot and dry weather here in southeastern Iowa have provided favorable conditions for spider mites. Typically we do not see spider mites reaching economically damaging levels until late July or early August when conations (hot and ry) are...
Cover crops have become quite popular in recent years, not only from a soil conservation and water quality perspective, but also due to their potential to be an additional forage source for livestock producers. To better understand how cover crops can be used as a potential forage source, Iowa...
It seems too early in the growing season yet to be seeing corn diseases like Northern Corn Leaf Blight (NCLB), but I happened to spot a few corn plants with NCLB lesions on them in an isolated area in a corn field in southeast Iowa. Why are we seeing NCLB so early?
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I’ve received a few questions asking what the purple weed is that is appearing in the landscape. It is probably either purple deadnettle (Lamium purpureum) or henbit (Lamium amplexicaule).
These weeds often get confused because they look similar. They both belong to the...
By: Rebecca Ahlers
As a field agronomist, you see all sorts of interesting things in fields and never know what you may come across. I've seen and heard of slug injury early on in soybeans, but snails?
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Are you seeing yellow-ish spots showing up in your soybean fields, especially in compacted parts of the field? This could be the start of Sudden Death Syndrome (SDS). With how wet its been there year, we've had the ideal conditions for disease development.
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