Hello everyone, My corn is all striped with rust. What caused it? Mary

-- Mary Fraley (kmfraley@orwell.net), September 03, 2000

Answers

Most rust, blight, wilt or fungus on corn is caused by weather conditions - hot, hot and humid, hot and wet, and is apparently worse after a mild winter. Take some leaves in to your country ag agent to identify exactly what it is.

-- Ken S. in TN (scharabo@aol.com), September 03, 2000.

Rust is a fungal disease. Sometimes you can slow the spread of the rust by removing the affected leaves as soon as you see them if you catch it early. It can be controlled by fungicides in most instances. If you keep a garden diary you may wish to apply a fungicide prior to observation of any, by noting when it appeared in a prior year. While I don't advocate sprays, when it comes to fungal diseases, prevention is the better cure.

-- Notforprint (Not@thekeyboard.com), September 05, 2000.

Thank you. My corn is covered in rust, but the cobs seem to be growing, so we'll see. The corn is not ripe yet. Mary

-- Mary Fraley (kmfraley@orwell.net), September 05, 2000.

I think rust on corn tastes great!!!

-- Fred Smith (Fred@hotmail.com), October 17, 2001.

If I remember right--this blight is considered a delicacy in some cultures. I've heard of farmers selling the brown stuff (although not bragging their corn had rust) and making a tidy profit. Anyone remember?

-- Ann Markson (tngreenacres@hotmail.com), October 17, 2001.