This is a recent satellite pic of Tropical Storm Arlene, which certainly has the capacity to bring Asian Soybean Rust to a significant part of the bean-growing area of the US... Up till now, rust has only been confirmed in Florida and Georgia. For those of you who don't know, Asian Soybean Rust can completely defoliate a soybean field within days - a serious problem for those who produce and consume soy.
I've said before that rust may not be a big problem in this country, mainly because it doesn't winter well here (Hurricane Ivan brought the infestation along in 2004- fortunately, that was late in the year, after beans were harvested). All bets are off when hurricanes and tropical storms enter the fray.
Here is a recent map of the soybean rust situation. This topic is not a problem for most of my readers, but here in the Midwest, it could be huge. I remain confident that rust will be contained with modern fungicides, even if the infestation becomes widespread. Time will tell.
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