Determining the Optimal Timing and Economic Return of Corn Fungicide Applications Using a Network Meta-Analysis

A network meta-analysis was conducted to assess the efficacy of fungicides in reducing disease and protecting yield in corn. Uniform protocols were designed to test the efficacy of 12 widely available corn fungicides applied at one of the following timings: in-furrow with the seed at planting, applied 5.1 cm to the side and 5.1 cm below the seed at planting, 10 to 12 leaves with a visible collar, tasseling to silking (VT/R1), or milk stage. A total of 152 trials were conducted across 18 states in the United States and Ontario, Canada, from 2019 to 2022. Studies were analyzed using network meta-analyses to determine the fungicide efficacy and expected yield benefit of individual products compared with a nontreated control (NTC). All fungicides significantly reduced disease severity compared with the NTC ( P < 0.001), and all fungicides resulted in greater yields compared with the NTC, except for Xyway LFR. Final disease severity influenced yield effect size, with fungicide application resulting in a greater yield effect size when final disease severity exceeded 5%. Fungicide application timing also influenced yield effect size, with fungicides applied at VT/R1 resulting in significantly lower disease (–7.6%) compared with the NTC. The yield effect size was typically greater in studies with the fungicide applied at VT/R1 compared with applications occurring at planting. Economic analyses concluded that expected net benefits were positive for all fungicides tested except for Delaro Complete and Xyway LFR. Most fungicides resulted in greater breakeven probabilities with increasing disease severity. The results emphasize that fungicide applications occurring at VT/R1 and when disease severity exceeds 5% are more likely to result in a positive economic gain. [Formula: see text] Copyright © 2026 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license .

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Journal
PhytoFrontiers™
Published
2025-10-23
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1094/phytofr-08-25-0079-r
Primary Topic
Entomopathogenic Microorganisms in Pest Control
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article
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article

Determining the Optimal Timing and Economic Return of Corn Fungicide Applications Using a Network Meta-Analysis

Tamra A. Jackson‐Ziems, Rodrigo Onofre, Mandy Bish, Alison E. Robertson et al.
PhytoFrontiers™
Entomopathogenic Microorganisms in Pest Control
article

Determining the Optimal Timing and Economic Return of Corn Fungicide Applications Using a Network Meta-Analysis

Tamra A. Jackson‐Ziems, Rodrigo Onofre, Mandy Bish, Alison E. Robertson, Emmanuel Byamukama, Kaitlyn Bissonnette, David B. Langston, Adam M. Byrne, Daren S. Mueller, Martin I. Chilvers, Thomas Wesley Allen, Nabin K. Dangal, Nathan M. Kleczewski, Andrew Friskop, Albert Tenuta, Heather Kelly, Kiersten Wise, June Chi-Yan Lo, Darcy E. P. Telenko, Edward J. Sikora, Paul P. Price, Travis Faske, Damon L. Smith, Austin McCoy, Alyssa K. Betts, Maria Oros, Isaac Baumann
article en

Abstract

A network meta-analysis was conducted to assess the efficacy of fungicides in reducing disease and protecting yield in corn. Uniform protocols were designed to test the efficacy of 12 widely available corn fungicides applied at one of the following timings: in-furrow with the seed at planting, applied 5.1 cm to the side and 5.1 cm below the seed at planting, 10 to 12 leaves with a visible collar, tasseling to silking (VT/R1), or milk stage. A total of 152 trials were conducted across 18 states in the United States and Ontario, Canada, from 2019 to 2022. Studies were analyzed using network meta-analyses to determine the fungicide efficacy and expected yield benefit of individual products compared with a nontreated control (NTC). All fungicides significantly reduced disease severity compared with the NTC ( P < 0.001), and all fungicides resulted in greater yields compared with the NTC, except for Xyway LFR. Final disease severity influenced yield effect size, with fungicide application resulting in a greater yield effect size when final disease severity exceeded 5%. Fungicide application timing also influenced yield effect size, with fungicides applied at VT/R1 resulting in significantly lower disease (–7.6%) compared with the NTC. The yield effect size was typically greater in studies with the fungicide applied at VT/R1 compared with applications occurring at planting. Economic analyses concluded that expected net benefits were positive for all fungicides tested except for Delaro Complete and Xyway LFR. Most fungicides resulted in greater breakeven probabilities with increasing disease severity. The results emphasize that fungicide applications occurring at VT/R1 and when disease severity exceeds 5% are more likely to result in a positive economic gain. [Formula: see text] Copyright © 2026 The Author(s). This is an open access article distributed under the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license .

PhytoFrontiers™
University of Nebraska–Lincoln (US), Louisiana State University (US), Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (CA), Louisiana State University Agricultural Center (US), University of Wisconsin–Madison (US), University of Kentucky (US), University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (US), State Street (United States) (US), Iowa State University (US), South Dakota State University (US), Urbana University (US), Kansas State University (US), Princeton University (US), Cotton (United States) (US), Purdue University West Lafayette (US), Suffolk University (US), University of Arkansas System (US), Mississippi Delta Community College (US), Syngenta (United States) (US), Michigan United (US), Plant (United States) (US), North Dakota State University (US), University of Tennessee at Knoxville (US), University of Missouri (US), Auburn University (US), Delta State University (US), Virginia Tech (US), University of Delaware (US), Michigan State University (US), Mississippi State University (US)
Openalex Percentile: Top 72%
Entomopathogenic Microorganisms in Pest Control
DOIOpen Access PDFOpenAlex
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