Sugarbeet growers in the Minn-Dak Farmers Cooperative growing region are reporting a promising crop despite severe spring wind events that forced significant replanting. “Roughly ten percent of our acres needed to be replanted this year, which is about five times what our average is,” explained Emma Burt, Minn-Dak research agronomist. Many fields have advanced beyond the ten-leaf stage. With limited insect pressure and good weed control, attention is now turning to Cercospora leaf spot. “In 2025, especially, the environment was just the most conducive it could have been for the disease to really thrive. That hot, wet, humid weather with lots of rainfall made the disease very aggressive last year, and we have a lot of inoculum coming into this season.”
