By Clint Thompson
The prolonged drought impacting the Southeast region has quickly become a weather event of the past.
“Looks like we’re getting back into that regular summertime pattern where it’s like it’s been the last couple of years. June gets here and it starts raining so much that it gets hard to keep (pecans) sprayed,” said Lenny Wells, University of Georgia Extension pecan specialist.
Wells cautioned growers about the potential for an uptick in scab disease pressure as a result of the increased rains being experienced in Georgia and Alabama. But the disease is a challenge to manage since rains have become more frequent in recent weeks.
“You know, put the spray on in the morning and then it gets washed off in the afternoon. When it’s raining this frequently, it’s hard, but, you know, most of our growers are keeping up with it,” Wells said.
Susceptible Varieties
There are also certain varieties that are most vulnerable to the current weather conditions. Fungicide sprays are required more frequently for those.
“So probably like Pawnee, Desirable, things like that are going to be the most susceptible ones. And usually this time of year, we are recommending rotating Dodine and one of the tin products in combination, and then rotating that with Miravis Top or Miravis Prime,” Wells said. “Just kind of stay on that rotation between the Dodine-10 and the Miravis Top or Miravis Prime throughout the nut-sizing period because those have proven to be far better nut scab materials than most of the other products that we currently have.”
According to the UGA Weather Network, Albany, Georgia, received 10.25 inches of rain during May, which followed 16.97 inches from Sept. 1, 2025 to April 30, 2026. The rains have helped growers cut back on irrigation applications but at the cost of driving up disease pressure.
“It makes it a little more challenging. And we’re just now getting into that stage where we’re getting into the nut-sizing stage. You know, June and July, they’re going to be sizing rapidly, and that’s when they’re most susceptible,” Wells said. “And when we’re getting the disease pressure during that real critical time, it’s a full-time job to keep on top of it.”