Integrated management of white mold in soybean

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, the causal agent for white mold (Sclerotinia stem rot), is a devastating soybean fungal pathogen. In 2006, white mold ranked in the top 10 yield reducing diseases of soybean and was estimated to account for over 2 billion metric tonnes of yield loss world-wide (1). In the United States, soybean losses in 2009 reached an estimated 59 million bushels due to white mold, which cost producers ~$560 million (2, 3). Disease control is limited due to the lack of complete resistance in commercial cultivars and an incomplete understanding of resistance mechanisms (3). Further investigation of white mold resistance mechanisms in soybean and subsequent resistance evaluations of soybean germplasm would improve commercially available resistance