Current Projects: Intercropping peanuts for disease control

Early and late leaf spot diseases cause up to 50% yield loss on peanuts, and accordingly motivate frequent and expensive fungicide sprays. Hebert Green Agroecology is working with Dr. Barbara Shew of the Department of Plant Pathology at North Carolina State University to develop intercropping strategies to reduce or eliminate the need for fungicides. Growing peanuts in strips with corn or cotton has significantly reduced disease relative to unsprayed fields under some conditions. This work has been funded by the USDA through the National Research Initiative Competitive Grants Program since 1999.

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