Helena Agronomy

The soybean cyst nematode (SCN) is the single most damaging pest affecting soybean in the United States, where annual yield losses due to SCN have been estimated at about $1.5 billion.  Dr. Greg Tylka joined Iowa State University in February 1990.  He currently is a professor in the Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology and serves as director of the Iowa Soybean Research Center at Iowa State University.Dr. Tylka discussed 1. Nematode biology: Nematodes hatch from eggs, they go through multiple molts on their way to adulthood.  Similar to just about everything else, their lifecycle is dependent on heat – Soybean Cyst nematode can go through a generation in a little less than a month under the right conditions.  They were introduced from asia in the early 1900’s, They are incredibly small, Greg says a female the size of a period on a printed page have hundreds of eggs.  They move locally through blow through wind, water run off, with equipment.  In the 90’s there was