Cool temperatures and rainfall delayed planting of cotton and peanut until after 20 April in Virginia. Thereafter, rainfall was widely scattered and soil temperatures averaged above 60 ºF which allowed planting to proceed in a timely manner. Most crops showed good emergence after planting throughout Eastern Virginia, except for some stand losses in early plantings of corn.

Common diseases of soybean are caused by viruses, bacteria, fungi and nematodes. Some diseases are spread by insect vectors and nematodes while others are spread by wind, splashing rain, or movement in soil. The best way to determine if disease control would be profitable is to first identify the diseases that are capable of causing  conomic yield losses. Symptoms of disease include plant damage caused by a pathogen and the reaction of plants to infection. Signs are the visible evidence of the pathogen. Some diseases have characteristic symptoms and signs that are identifiable in the field.

Nematodes, or unsegmented roundworms, feed in or on roots of plants. More than 100 species of plant-parasitic nematodes feed on soybean roots, but only a few are economically important. In Virginia, most nematode species can be found in the sandier Coastal Plain soils. However, some nematode species can also develop and reproduce on the heavier-textured soils of the Piedmont and Shenandoah Valley. This guide will focus on those that can cause damage to soybeans in Virginia.