The U.S. Department of Agriculture's Agricultural Research Service scientists are leaving no stone -- or rather, leaf -- unturned in their search for new ways to counter the fungus that causes tar spot, a yield-robbing disease of field corn in the midwestern United States.
Microbial allies may help corn
Tar spot manifests as raised black spots that mottle the leaves, husks and stalks of susceptible corn varieties, diminishing their photosynthetic ability and, in severe cases, killing the plants and inflicting grain yield losses of 20 to 60 bushels an acre.
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