Arkansas has maintained the most comprehensive soybean disease screening program in the southern U.S. A combination of field nurseries and greenhouse tests are used to evaluate all cultivars that are entered into the official University of Arkansas Variety Testing Program (OVT) each year for resistance to major diseases of concern in Arkansas.
Each year, the results form the basis for the annual Soybean Update and the SOYVA cultivar selection program to inform growers of the strengths and weaknesses of new soybean cultivars relative to disease resistance. Field disease nurseries are established for evaluating frogeye leaf spot and aerial blight. Two sites are equipped with overhead irrigation...