UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Locations Have Been Finalized For A Free Asian Soybean Rust Management Satellite Videoconference, To Be Held From 7 P.m. To 9 P.m. On Thursday, March 17 At 12 Downlink Sites Around The State.

Produced by Penn State's College of Agricultural Sciences and Penn State Cooperative Extension, the interactive event will be broadcast from studios at Penn State's University Park campus and downlinked at the following Penn State Cooperative Extension county offices:

--Beaver County, 2020 Beaver Ave., Monaca --Cumberland County, 1100 Claremont Road, Carlisle --Erie County, 850 East Gore Rd., Erie --Franklin County, 191 Franklin Farm Ln., Chambersburg --Huntingdon County, Fairgrounds Rd., Huntingdon --Indiana County, 827 Water St., Indiana --Lancaster County, 1383 Arcadia Road, Room 1, Lancaster --Lawrence County, Courthouse, Court St., New Castle --Mercer County, 463 North Perry Highway, Mercer --Schuylkill County, 1202 Ag Center Drive, Pottsville --Tioga County, Courthouse Annex, 118 Main Street, Wellsboro --Westmoreland County, Donohoe Center, Donohoe Rd., Greensburg --York County, 112 Pleasant Acres Rd., York

In Lebanon County, extension staff will present a recording of the videoconference from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. on Friday, March 18 at the Penn State Cooperative Extension office at 2120 Cornwall Road, Suite 1, in Lebanon.

Hosted by Erick De Wolf, assistant professor of plant pathology, the videoconference will feature an update on the progress of soybean rust toward the state, a presentation of monitoring networks and disease forecasts at state and national levels, and in-depth information on the fungicides and application technologies approved to combat the disease. He will be joined for discussion and a live question-and-answer session by South Dakota State University plant pathologist Martin Draper and Penn State aerobiologist Scott Isard.

Attendees at the downlink sites also will be given a copy of the new publication, "Soybean Rust Identification and Management." The free, eight-page booklet contains full-color photographs for identifying rust-infected plants, as well as other useful information. The publication is available for download on the Web at http://pubs.cas.psu.edu/FreePubs/pdfs/UL213.pdf.

A toll-free telephone number and a fax number will be given during the broadcast for audience members to ask questions of the panelists. Viewers with addressable satellite dishes and receivers may access the videoconference on Satellite SBS-6, Transponder 15 at Frequency 12072. For more information on downlinking the program, call the College of Agricultural Sciences' Information and Communication Technologies office at 814-865-6309.

Caused by an airborne fungus, Asian soybean rust could defoliate up to 80 percent of the nation’s soybean crops. The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates that nationwide losses from the disease could reach from $640 million to $1.2 billion for the 2005 growing season. First found in Louisiana in November 2004, the fungus has spread steadily northward and westward since being brought to the country from South America by last year’s hurricanes. The rust also can infect a variety of other beans.

More information on soybean rust management tactics and techniques is available on Penn State's Soybean Rust Web site at http://soybeanrust.cas.psu.edu/. Information on soybean rust management for corn and soybean crops also can be found on the Web at http://cornandsoybeans.psu.edu/.

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Gary Abdullah Office 814-863-2708 FAX 814-863-9877