What is the status of alternative hosts of Asian soybean rust?
Alternative hosts are other plants that can be infected by the fungus. (This may be confusing because some plant pathogens require an ‘alternate host’, which is required to complete the pathogens life cycle.) Researchers have identified more than 80 alternative hosts for Asian soybean rust listed in the USDA Strategic Plan to Minimize the Impact of the Introduction and Establishment of Soybean Rust on Soybean Production in the United States. The Plant Health Initiative website states that there are 20 species of alternative hosts for soybean rust in southern U.S., including the common weed kudzu. Some other common hosts are yellow sweet clover, vetch, lupine, along with green, kidney, lima and butter beans. Although alfalfa is not currently considered a host of Asian soybean rust, it is being investigated. Forrest Nutter, plant pathologist, Iowa State University, has reviewed historical data gathered by the ISU Plant Pathology Clinic. Nutter concluded that in Iowa, alfalfa rust (Uromyc
