Managing soybean cyst nematode can influence more than how farmers protect yield. The resistance needed to manage the pest can also affect which soybean varieties are available to match the other agronomic needs of an individual field.
BASF is developing its Nemisphere trait as a new tool for SCN management, but company officials say one of the potential benefits is giving growers more flexibility when selecting soybean varieties.
BASF’s Mike McCarville says Peking resistance is currently available in a relatively small portion of the soybean market. That can limit the number of varieties growers have to choose from when SCN resistance becomes one of the primary factors in seed selection.
McCarville says BASF’s goal is to eventually offer Nemisphere across a broader soybean catalog, allowing growers to consider SCN management while still selecting varieties based on the other characteristics needed for a particular field.
BASF Technical Marketing Manager Justin Moritz says that distinction is important because yield is ultimately the result of several factors working together.
Moritz describes yield as the result of genetics, environment and management. If growers are forced to select from a narrower group of varieties primarily because of SCN resistance, he says they may not always have access to the germplasm best suited for the rest of the conditions in a field.
He compared the additional flexibility to a football coach being able to open the playbook back up. Instead of having SCN management dictate one of the biggest decisions in variety selection, growers could have more freedom to consider the complete package of genetics and agronomic characteristics.
For BASF, that optionality is part of the broader goal behind Nemisphere. The company says the technology is intended not only to provide another way to manage SCN, but also to reduce the compromises growers may have to make when choosing soybean genetics.
Nemisphere is currently targeted for commercial launch in 2028 as BASF continues development of soybean varieties carrying the trait.
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