By Clint Thompson
It is estimated that about 25% of Georgia’s peanut acres have been planted so far this spring. But it is those acres planted right before the recent deluge of rainfall that has Scott Monfort, University of Georgia (UGA) Extension peanut agronomist concerned.
Monfort and the Georgia Peanut Commission caution growers to scout their plants regularly to ensure a proper plant stand amid increased potential for disease buildup.
“Everything that’s been planted so far looks pretty good,” Monfort said. “Now, some of the stuff that was planted last week that had to go through this four, five, six days of wet, wet conditions, I’m hoping we don’t see an elevated amount of rot, which we could if it gets trapped in there with some moisture and it can’t get rid of it.”
According to the UGA Weather Network, there was 2.52 inches of rain in Tifton, Georgia, from May 7 to May 12. There were 4.46 inches during that same timeframe in Moultrie, Georgia.
“If you planted the last part of last week, the Wednesday, Thursday, Friday of last week before this rain started really, and you’ve got a lot of rain and we’re pretty saturated right now, just keep a watch after it,” Monfort said.
“You know, once this rain passes by, and we start to dry up a little bit, go out there and you can dig down and see if you got a bunch of them starting to rot or if you had, they’re germinating and coming on up. If you’re seeing a lot of rot, just keep a watch after it, because those are the fields that you might need to come back and replant a little bit.”