Asian soybean rust spreading in Mississippi

JACKSON — Asian soybean rust is spreading across Mississippi and has now been found in nine counties.

Officials at Mississippi State University Extension Service say the disease was detected Friday in Holmes, Carroll, Grenada, Humphreys, Leflore, Montgomery, Sunflower, Yalobusha, and Yazoo counties.

In his weekly field report, Ernie Flint, an agronomist for the MSU Extension Service, says most of the locations where soybean rust was found are still showing very low levels of infection. However, Flint said, one of the fields near Winona in Montgomery County showed a higher level of the disease than has been found in Mississippi to date.

Another location in Yalobusha County has been described as having a moderate infection.

In 2008, rust was detected in 79 of the states 82 counties but caused no yield losses.

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