With 22 inch row spacings this problem could be even more severe. With the potential for warm sunny weather in many portions of North Dakota this week heat canker maybe observed on small grains. Heat canker is most common on plants less than 4 inches and is favored by dark soils and hot sunny days before plants a large enough to provide shade. Once jointing occurs and stem elongation begins the potential for heat canker is minimal. Heat canker is caused when plant tissues at the soil surface are injured by the hot soil.
Typical symptoms are white bands on one or more leaves.
These bands appear first at the soil surface but as plant growth occurs they will extend above the soil surface. In more severe cases stems may be constricted at the soil line and the seedlings may fall over. In most cases of heat canker on small grains the growing point of the seedling is not injured. Most plants will recover with minimal affect on crop productivity. Severe leaf damage can occur in small grains as a result of wind blown soil particles which sand blasts the young seedlings.