Nitrogen and potassium sources of fertilizers may affect wheat blast and Fusarium head blight under favorable weather conditions

Fusarium head blight (FHB) is a serious disease of wheat and barley that not only lowers yield but also contaminates the grain with associated mycotoxins such as deoxynivalenol (DON). Chemical control options for FHB and DON include application of triazole fungicides at the anthesis or flowering stage. This presents practical challenges for growers in managing FHB, as the appropriate timing window typically lasts only 3 to 4 days. If this small window is missed, due to weather conditions or technical problems, fungicide application is less effective in controlling FHB and DON. The present work was conducted over 2 years (2019 and 2020) to test the efficacy of a new fungicide (pydiflumetofen + propiconazole) from Syngenta labeled as Miravis Ace in controlling FHB and DON content at 50% head emergence (Feekes 10.3), anthesis (Feekes 10.5.1), and end of flowering (Feekes 10.5.3) stages. Prosaro 421 SC, a standard FHB control triazole fungicide, was used at all three stages for comparison with the test fungicide. Miravis Ace application at 50% head emergence provided significant control over the nontreated check for FHB incidence (2020), FHB severity (2019), and DON content (2019) with control efficacies as high as 51, 69, and 52%, respectively. However, mean control percentages relative to the check were highest with Miravis Ace at anthesis in both 2019 and 2020 for all the FHB parameters. In conclusion, 50% head emergence provides statistically significant control on FHB and DON, but anthesis was the most effective application stage for Miravis Ace.

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Anthesis, the infectious process and disease progress curves for fusarium head blight in wheat

Summa Phytopathologica ◽

10.1590/0100-5405/2075 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 42 (2) ◽

pp. 134-139 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Erlei Melo Reis ◽

Cristina Boareto ◽

Anderson Luiz Durante Danelli ◽

Sandra Maria Zoldan

Keyword(s):

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Disease Incidence ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Gibberella Zeae ◽

Head Blight ◽

Infectious Process ◽

Disease Progress ◽

Winter Cereals ◽

Aggregation Pattern ◽

Adverse Weather

ABSTRACT Fusarium head blight of wheat (Triticum aestivum), caused by the fungus Gibberella zeae, is a floral infecting disease that causes quantitative and qualitative losses to winter cereals. In Brazil, the sanitary situation of wheat has led to research in order to develop strategies for sustainable production, even under adverse weather conditions. To increase the knowledge of the relationship among the presence of anthesis, the infectious process, the disease progress and the saprophytic fungi present in wheat anthers, studies were conducted in the experimental field of University of Passo Fundo (UPF), using the cultivar Marfim, in the 2011 growing season. The disease incidence in spikes and spikelets was evaluated. The presence of exserted anthers increased the spike exposure time to the inoculum. The final incidence of fusarium head blight, in the field, was dependent on the presence of exserted anthers. The disease followed an aggregation pattern and its evolution increased with time, apparently showing growth according to secondary cycles. The fungi isolated from exserted anthers (Alternaria sp., Fusarium sp., Drechslera spp. and Epicoccum sp.) did not compete for the infection site of fusarium head blight in wheat, not interfering with the incidence of F. graminearum.

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Risk Assessment Models for Wheat Fusarium Head Blight Epidemics Based on Within-Season Weather Data

Phytopathology ◽

10.1094/phyto.2003.93.4.428 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 93 (4) ◽

pp. 428-435 ◽

Cited By ~ 183

Author(s):

E. D. De Wolf ◽

L. V. Madden ◽

P. E. Lipps

Keyword(s):

Logistic Regression ◽

Relative Humidity ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Prediction Accuracy ◽

Regression Models ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Predictor Variables ◽

Stepwise Logistic Regression ◽

Head Blight ◽

Logistic Regression Models

Logistic regression models for wheat Fusarium head blight were developed using information collected at 50 location-years, including four states, representing three different U.S. wheat-production regions. Non-parametric correlation analysis and stepwise logistic regression analysis identified combinations of temperature, relative humidity, and rainfall or durations of specified weather conditions, for 7 days prior to anthesis, and 10 days beginning at crop anthesis, as potential predictor variables. Prediction accuracy of developed logistic regression models ranged from 62 to 85%. Models suitable for application as a disease warning system were identified based on model prediction accuracy, sensitivity, specificity, and availability of weather variables at crop anthesis. Four of the identified models correctly classified 84% of the 50 location-years. A fifth model that used only pre-anthesis weather conditions correctly classified 70% of the location-years. The most useful predictor variables were the duration (h) of precipitation 7 days prior to anthesis, duration (h) that temperature was between 15 and 30°C 7 days prior to anthesis, and the duration (h) that temperature was between 15 and 30°C and relative humidity was greater than or equal to 90%. When model performance was evaluated with an independent validation set (n = 9), prediction accuracy was only 6% lower than the accuracy for the original data sets. These results indicate that narrow time periods around crop anthesis can be used to predict Fusarium head blight epidemics.

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Evaluation of efficacy of modern fungicides against fusarium head blight on winter wheat

Interdepartmental Thematic Scientific Collection of Plant Protection and Quarantine ◽

10.36495/1606-9773.2019.65.51-59 ◽

2019 ◽

pp. 51-59

Author(s):

M. Dzham

Keyword(s):

Winter Wheat ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Artificial Inoculation ◽

Head Blight ◽

Protection Measures ◽

Growing Seasons ◽

Biological Preparation ◽

Significant Difference ◽

Untreated Check

Goal. To study the influence of modern biological and chemical preparations on the development of fungi of the genus Fusariumunder conditions of artificial inoculation. Methods. The efficacy of fungicides was studied in 2018—2019 in the Zhytomyr region, Pulinsky district under the conditions of artificial inoculation on winter wheat of the Bogdan variety. Mixture of conidia of the fusarium fungi (F. graminearum, F. culmorum, F. poae, F. avenaceum) was used for ear inoculation. The plot area was 2 m2 in four replications, the plot placement was randomized. The inoculation of winter wheat ears was carried out at the phase of mass flowering. At the phase of milky-wax maturity, records were taken to determine the spread and development of the disease. The following fungicides were used to protect wheat crops: Folicur BT EC, 1.2 l/ha, Magnello 350 EC, 1.0 l/ ha, Haupsin, 0.2 l/ha, Fitodoktor, 0.05 kg/ha, Alliot 250 EC, 0.5 l/ ha, Bumper Super EC, 1.2 l/ha and mixtures of Magnello 350 EC, 0.75 l/ha + Haupsin 0.2 l/ha, Magnello350 EC, 0.75 l/ha + Fitodoktor, 0.05 kg/ha. Results. The results obtained during the years of investigationsindicate that the used preparations are efficient for the protection of crops from fusarium head blight on winter wheat. However,not all fungicides tested had high enough efficacy. The most effective against the pathogens F.graminearum, F. culmorum, F. poae, F. avenaceumunder conditions of Zhytomyr region were fungicides Folicur BT EC, 1.2 l/ha, Magnello 350 EC, 1.0 l/ha and mixtures of fungicide and biological preparation (Magnello 350 EC, 0.75 l/ ha + Haupsin, 0.2 l/ha). Efficacy of fungicides used against these pathogens ranged from 69.2% to 75.2%. After fungicide application the weight of 1000 grains increased by 7.3—13.6 g. Significant difference between experimental variants and untreated check on 1000 grain weight was noted. With the use of fungicides, the yield increased by 22.3—24.8%. Conclusions. The analysis of the protection against fusarium head blight convinces the need to apply chemical protection measures when weather conditions are favorable for the development of the disease. In the growing seasons of 2018—2019, under conditions of the Zhytomyr region, the most promising and effective against the pathogens F.graminearum, F. culmorum, F. poae, F. avenaceum were fungicides Folicur BT EC, 1.2 l/ha, Magnello 350 EC, 1.0 l/ ha and mixtures of fungicide and biological preparation Magnello 350 EC, 0.75 l/ ha + Haupsin, 0.2 l/ha.

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Post-Anthesis Moisture Increased Fusarium Head Blight and Deoxynivalenol Levels in North Carolina Winter Wheat

Phytopathology ◽

10.1094/phyto-99-4-0320 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 99 (4) ◽

pp. 320-327 ◽

Cited By ~ 78

Author(s):

Christina Cowger ◽

Jennifer Patton-Özkurt ◽

Gina Brown-Guedira ◽

Leandro Perugini

Keyword(s):

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Disease Severity ◽

Disease Incidence ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Selective Medium ◽

First Year ◽

Type I ◽

Head Blight ◽

Fourfold Increase ◽

Screening Programs

Current models for forecasting Fusarium head blight (FHB) and deoxynivalenol (DON) levels in wheat are based on weather near anthesis, and breeding for resistance to FHB pathogens often relies on irrigation before and shortly after anthesis to encourage disease development. The effects of post-anthesis environmental conditions on FHB are poorly understood. We performed a field experiment at Kinston, NC, to explore the effects of increasing duration of post-anthesis moisture on disease incidence, disease severity, Fusarium-damaged kernels (FDK), percent infected kernels, and DON. The experiment had a split-plot design, and one trial was conducted in each of two successive years. Main plots consisted of post-anthesis mist durations of 0, 10, 20, or 30 days. Subplots were of eight cultivars in the first year and seven in the second year, two being susceptible to FHB and the remainder each with varying degrees of apparent type I and type II resistance. Plots were inoculated by spraying Fusarium graminearum macroconidia at mid-anthesis. Averaging across years and cultivars, 10 or 20 days of post-anthesis mist had the same effect (P ≥ 0.198) and were associated with an approximately fourfold increase in mean disease incidence and eightfold increase in disease severity compared with 0 days of mist (P ≤ 0.0002). In both years, mean FDK percentages at 0 and 10 days post-anthesis mist were the same and significantly lower than FDK percentages under 20 or 30 days of post-anthesis mist. Mist duration had a significant effect on percent kernels infected with Fusarium spp. as detected by a selective medium assay of 2007 samples. Averaging across all cultivars, in both years, DON levels increased significantly for 10 days compared with 0 days of mist, and increased again with 20 days of mist (P ≤ 0.04). This is the first investigation to show that extended post-flowering moisture can have a significant enhancing effect on FHB, FDK, DON, and percent infected kernels of wheat. For all disease and toxin assays, cultivar rankings were significantly noncorrelated among mist durations in at least 1 year, suggesting that FHB screening programs might rank genotypes differently under extended post-anthesis moisture than without it. Our findings also imply that accurate forecasts of DON in small grains must take account of post-anthesis weather conditions.

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Development of Weather-Based Predictive Models for Fusarium Head Blight and Deoxynivalenol Accumulation for Spring Malting Barley

Plant Disease ◽

10.1094/pdis-05-11-0389 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 96 (5) ◽

pp. 673-680 ◽

Cited By ~ 13

Author(s):

K. D. Bondalapati ◽

J. M. Stein ◽

S. M. Neate ◽

S. H. Halley ◽

L. E. Osborne ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Relative Humidity ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Gibberella Zeae ◽

Predictor Variables ◽

Northern Great Plains ◽

Malting Barley ◽

Head Blight ◽

Hourly Temperature ◽

Full Head

The associations between Fusarium head blight (FHB), caused by Gibberella zeae, and deoxynivalenol (DON) accumulation in spring malting barley (Hordeum vulgare) and hourly weather conditions predictive of DON accumulation were examined using data from six growing seasons in the U.S. Northern Great Plains. Three commonly grown cultivars were planted throughout the region, and FHB disease and DON concentration were recorded. Nine predictor variables were calculated using hourly temperature and relative humidity during the 10 days preceding full head spike emergence. Simple logistic regression models were developed using these predictor variables based on a binary threshold for DON of 0.5 mg/kg. Four of the nine models had sensitivity greater than 80%, and specificity of these models ranged from 67 to 84% (n = 150). The most useful predictor was the joint effect of average hourly temperature and a weighted duration of uninterrupted hours (h) with relative humidity greater than or equal to 90%. The results of this study confirm that FHB incidence is significantly associated with DON accumulation in the grain and that weather conditions prior to full head emergence could be used to accurately predict the risk of economically significant DON accumulation for spring malting barley.

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Efficacy Assessment of a New Fungicide, Miravis Ace, for Control of Fusarium Head Blight in Wheat

Plant Health Progress ◽

10.1094/php-06-20-0050-rs ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 21 (4) ◽

pp. 365-368

Author(s):

Lovepreet Singh ◽

Jason P. Wight ◽

Joseph Crank ◽

Louis Thorne ◽

Yanhong Dong ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Genetic Resistance ◽

Single Mode ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Economic Losses ◽

Head Blight ◽

Efficacy Assessment ◽

Serious Disease ◽

Pathogen Populations ◽

Succinate Dehydrogenase Inhibitor

Fusarium head blight (FHB) is a serious disease of wheat and barley that leads to significant economic losses and deteriorated grain quality because of the associated mycotoxins. Genetic resistance and use of fungicides are the methods used to control FHB. However, in weather conditions conducive for FHB epidemics, higher levels of genetic resistance as well as greater efficacy of fungicides are required to adequately control this disease. Due to the extensive use of a single mode of action for management of FHB, there is a need to diversify fungicides used to lower the risk of resistance development in pathogen populations. In this 2-year study, we evaluated the performance of a new fungicide, Miravis Ace (a proprietary mix of pydiflumetofen and propiconazole active ingredients produced by Syngenta) for controlling FHB. It is a mix of succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor and demethylation inhibitor fungicides and can add diversity to the fungicide toolkit for FHB management. The level of control of FHB and deoxynivalenol (DON) achieved by spraying Miravis Ace at anthesis (Feekes growth stage 10.5.1) was found to be equivalent to that provided by the currently recommended products for managing FHB and reducing DON in wheat and barley.

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Piriformospora indicareduces fusarium head blight disease severity and mycotoxin DON contamination in wheat under UK weather conditions

Plant Pathology ◽

10.1111/ppa.12483 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 65 (6) ◽

pp. 940-952 ◽

Cited By ~ 14

Author(s):

M. Rabiey ◽

M. W. Shaw

Keyword(s):

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Disease Severity ◽

Weather Conditions ◽

Head Blight ◽

Blight Disease

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Wheat Blast and Fusarium Head Blight Display Contrasting Interaction Patterns on Ears of Wheat Genotypes Differing in Resistance

Phytopathology ◽

10.1094/phyto-09-15-0202-r ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 106 (3) ◽

pp. 270-281 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Xia Ha ◽

Birger Koopmann ◽

Andreas von Tiedemann

Keyword(s):

Gene Expression ◽

Fusarium Head Blight ◽

Expression Patterns ◽

Laser Scanning Microscopy ◽

Confocal Laser ◽

Interaction Patterns ◽

Head Blight ◽

Disease Phenotypes ◽

Wheat Blast ◽

Sumai 3

The interaction of wheat with two ear pathogens, Magnaporthe wheat blast (MWB) and Fusarium graminearum (Fusarium head blight, FHB), was studied on the phenotypic, histological, and gene expression level. Most of the 27 wheat cultivars inoculated with MWB and F. graminearum displayed inverse disease responses to blast and FHB infection. Two cultivars, Milan and Sumai 3, were selected expressing converse disease phenotypes to blast (Milan, R)/(Sumai 3, S) and FHB (Milan, S)/(Sumai 3, R). Confocal laser scanning microscopy revealed early (12 h postinoculation) colonization of the spikelets by MWB similarly on both cultivars, while F. graminearum infected anthers of the susceptible cultivar earlier. Both pathogens grew much faster in the rachilla of susceptible than resistant cultivars, indicating that resistance is mainly expressed in this part connecting the spikelet with the rachis. In general, O2− and H2O2 levels were unrelated to disease expression in the four studied interactions. The differential disease phenotypes, fungal spread in the rachis, and colonization patterns in the spikelets were confirmed by distinct gene expression patterns. Among the eight genes analyzed, seven were more strongly induced by FHB than by blast. Genes for chitinase (Chi2), β-1,3-glucanase (PR2), a plant defensin homolog (PRPI), and peroxidase (Pox2) were strongly upregulated in Milan in response to both pathogens, while PR2 and PR5 (thaumatin-like protein) were transiently triggered by MWB on both cultivars. Upregulation of cinnamoyl-CoA reductase (CCR), cytochrome P450 (CYP709C1), and UDP-glycosyl transferase (UGT) were more prominent in ears infected with F. graminearum, while upregulation of UGT was higher in Sumai 3 when infected with either pathogen. Cultivar resistance to FHB was reflected by clearly higher expression levels of UGT and CYP709C1 in Sumai 3. The differential responses of wheat to the two ear pathogens demonstrated in this study makes it unlikely that common resistance genes exist for control of FHB and blast, suggesting the need to stack many genes associated with resistance in breeding programs for multiple resistance.

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