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Soybean gall midge detected in parts of Iowa

An agronomist says soybean gall midge continues to emerge in parts of the Corn Belt.

Meaghan Anderson with Iowa State University tells Brownfield the pest was recently found in the central part of the state. “It’s a very small fly that lays its eggs at the base of soybean plants,” she said. “The larvae basically burrow into that stem, and they can cut the plants off from water and nutrients, unfortunately.”

Anderson says there aren’t any known effective management strategies to suppress soybean gall midge. “We can see as much as 100% yield loss starting at field edges and then moving into the field,” she said. “It just all depends on how bad they are. It’s something that now that we’ve identified it here, it’s probably here to stay.”

The first Midwest report of soybean gall midge emergence in 2022 was on June 7^th near Davey, Nebraska.