Leaf Rust  -  Winter Wheat Diseases

Craig Grau, Plant Pathology

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

 Recent weather conditions have favored foliar diseases of winter wheat such as Septoria leaf blotch and powdery mildew.  Also, leaf rust is gaining momentum in the southern US and is active as far north as southern Illinois and Missouri.  The leaf rust pathogen very likely overwintered in Wisconsin based on a confirmed overwintering occurrence at the University of Minnesota research station at Rosemount.  All of these situations raise the alert for monitoring diseases in winter wheat fields.  Each disease can be controlled by any one of several fungicide products.  Fungicide products registered for winter wheat are Quadris, Quilt, Tilt, PropiMax, Stratego, Headline, Baytan 30 and formulations of mancozeb.  Consult Pest Management in Wisconsin Field Crops UWEX no. A3646 for more information.  The Cereal Rust Bulletin is an excellent source of information on the current status of rust diseases of cereal crops.  It is published weekly by the USDA Cereal Rust Lab located at theUniversity of Minnesota in St. Paul (http://www.ars.usda.gov/Main/docs.htm?docid=9757).