Late last week I had the following conversation and spent time discussing spider mites and how insecticides and fungicides can flare them (see bleow.) A week later, going into the coming weekend, it looks like weather conditions will shift to a good chance of rain across much of the state and cooler temperatures. This will minimize the threat from spider mites but will result in the pathogen that causes Sclerotinia blight to become active. There are several approaches to managing Sclerotinia blight. David Langston at Virginia Tech has done a lot of work in this area in recent years. Miravis plus Elatus is a good option and provides suppression on par with Omega 500. This treatment also does well on leaf spot and stem rot. David also has some preliminary data showing that other fungicides that suppress stem rot and leaf spot have activity against Sclerotinia blight. As that information becomes available, we will share it.
As you move into to next week you will need to think about Sclerotinia blight in fields with a history of this disease. We do have options. Also, LeAnn has the Sclerotinia blight advisory for North Carolina up and running. That can help you from a weather forecast standpoint. We recommend that you scout fields when conditions are favorable for this disease, generally starting in lower areas that are likely to have higher soil moisture that is favorable for this disease.

Question Last Week:

Severe drought on 75 day old peanuts May 20. Have not sprayed my 1st application. If it rains today, I will use Bravo and tebuconazolke. Will that be okay or do I need to use something different?

Jordan:

I would spray Provost Sliver. It has curative activity in case the pathogen has been active. Also activity on stem rot and less likely to flare spider mites than chlorothalonil.