Katherine L. Stevenson

Integrated Disease Management of Leaf Spot and Spotted Wilt of Peanut

Field experiments were carried out to evaluate the effects of integrated management of early leaf spot, caused by Cercospora arachidicola, and spotted wilt, caused by Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV), on peanut (Arachis hypogaea) using host resistance, two tillage systems, and varying fungicide programs. Effects on pod yield and economic return were assessed. Genotypes C-11-2-39 and Tifrunner demonstrated the best field resistance to TSWV, whereas cvs. DP-1 and GA-01R and line C-28-305 were among the genotypes with the best leaf spot resistance. Epidemics of both diseases were comparable or suppressed in strip-tilled plots compared with conventionally tilled plots. Leaf spot intensity decreased with increased fungicide applications, but to a lesser degree with use of resistance and strip tillage. Yields and net returns were similar between tillage treatments in 2002 and lower in strip tillage in 2003. Genotypes with the greatest yields and returns were C-11-2-39, C-99R, and GA-01R. Returns were comparable among the four-, five-, and seven-spray programs in both years, despite differences in yield. The standard production system, Georgia Green in conventional tillage with seven sprays, resulted in lower returns than half the integrated systems tested in 2002, but had comparable or higher returns than nearly all systems in 2003. When significant, yields and returns were correlated with spotted wilt intensity to a greater degree than leaf spot intensity.

Molecular characterization of boscalid‐ and penthiopyrad‐resistant isolates of Didymella bryoniae and assessment of their sensitivity to fluopyram

BACKGROUND Didymella bryoniae has a history of developing resistance to single-site fungicides. A recent example is with the succinate-dehydrogenase-inhibiting fungicide (SDHI) boscalid. In laboratory assays, out of 103 isolates of this fungus, 82 and seven were found to be very highly resistant (B(VHR) ) and highly resistant (B(HR) ) to boscalid respectively. Cross-resistance studies with the new SDHI penthiopyrad showed that the B(VHR) isolates were only highly resistant to penthiopyrad (B(VHR) -P(HR) ), while the B(HR) isolates appeared sensitive to penthiopyrad (B(HR) -P(S) ). In this study, the molecular mechanism of resistance in these two phenotypes (B(VHR) -P(HR) and B(HR) -P(S) ) was elucidated, and their sensitivity to the new SDHI fluopyram was assessed. RESULTS A 456 bp cDNA amplified fragment of the succinate dehydrogenase iron sulfur gene (DbSDHB) was initially cloned and sequenced from two sensitive (B(S) -P(S) ), two B(VHR) -P(HR) and one B(HR) -P(S) isolate of D. bryoniae. Comparative analysis of the DbSDHB protein revealed that a highly conserved histidine residue involved in the binding of SDHIs and present in wild-type isolates was replaced by tyrosine (H277Y) or arginine (H277R) in the B(VHR) -P(HR) and B(HR) -P(S) variants respectively. Further examination of the role and extent of these alterations showed that the H/Y and H/R substitutions were present in the remaining B(VHR) -P(HR) and B(HR) -P(S) variants respectively. Analysis of the sensitivity to fluopyram of representative isolates showed that both SDHB mutants were sensitive to this fungicide as the wild-type isolates. CONCLUSION The genotype-specific cross-resistance relationships between the SDHIs boscalid and penthiopyrad and the lack of cross-resistance between these fungicides and fluopyram should be taken into account when selecting SDHIs for gummy stem blight management.

Effects of reduced tillage, resistant cultivars, and reduced fungicide inputs on progress of early leaf spot of peanut (Arachis hypogaea)

Field experiments were conducted in 2000 and 2001 on Georgia Green, Florida MDR-98, and C-99R peanut (Arachis hypogaea) cultivars in Tifton, GA, to determine the effects of tillage practices on early leaf spot (Cercospora arachidicola) epidemics under standard fungicide regimes and fungicide regimes with fewer applications. Leaf spot epidemics were suppressed in reduced tillage (strip-till) plots compared with conventional tillage plots and were suppressed in MDR-98 and C-99R cultivars compared with the standard runner-type cultivar, Georgia Green. Within tillage and cultivar combinations, leaf spot intensity typically was lower in plots treated with fungicides at standard intervals (seven total applications) than in those treated at extended intervals (four total applications). However, in most cases, leaf spot control in extended interval treatments in the strip-till system was comparable to that in the standard interval treatments in conventional tillage. Based on these results, the number of fungicide applications could be reduced without compromising control of leaf spot when reduced tillage is used, especially if combined with moderately resistant cultivars. Suppression of leaf spot epidemics in the strip-till plots did not coincide with higher yields in either year. In 2001, yields were lower in strip-till plots than in conventional tillage plots. Yields were typically higher in the cultivar C-99R than in Georgia Green, regardless of the tillage treatment.

Management of Late Leaf Spot of Peanut with Benomyl and Chlorothalonil: A Study in Preserving Fungicide Utility

Recent registration of sterol biosynthesis inhibitor and strobilurin fungicides for control of early (Cercospora arachidicola) and late (Cercosporidium personatum) leaf spot diseases of peanut (Arachis hypogaea) has renewed interest in the potential for loss of disease control due to fungicide resistance. The objectives of this study were to use the systemic fungicide benomyl, the protectant fungicide chlorothalonil, and late leaf spot of peanut as a model system to compare fungicide application strategies for fungicide resistance management. Field experiments were conducted at Tifton and Plains, GA, in 1995 and 1996 to determine the effects of alternate applications, mixtures, and alternating block applications of chlorothalonil and benomyl compared with full-season applications of two rates of chlorothalonil and two rates of benomyl alone on late leaf spot of peanut and on the proportion of the pathogen population resistant to benomyl following the various regimes. Tank mix combinations of half rates of the two fungicides and alternations of the full rates of the two fungicides provided better (P ≤ 0.05) control of late leaf spot than full-season applications of either rate of benomyl alone, and were comparable to full rates of chlorothalonil alone. Neither tank mixes nor alternating sprays prevented an increase in the relative frequency of benomyl-resistant isolates compared with other treatments in which benomyl was used. Both mixtures and alternate applications of chlorothalonil and benomyl were effective for management of leaf spot in fields where benomyl alone did not provide season-long leaf spot control.

Sensitivity of Sclerotinia homoeocarpa Isolates to Propiconazole and Impact on Control of Dollar Spot

In response to reports of reduced efficacy of propiconazole for control of dollar spot, isolates of Sclerotinia homoeocarpa were collected from several locations in Georgia and tested for sensitivity to propiconazole and other demethylation-inhibiting (DMI) fungicides. Two discriminatory concentrations of propiconazole (0.02 and 0.2 μg ml-1) were used to detect lower in vitro sensitivity in two populations that had been exposed repeatedly to propiconazole than in four nonexposed populations. Mean 50% effective concentration (EC50) values for a nonexposed population (baseline) and a DMI-exposed population were 0.0049 and 0.0283 μg ml-1, respectively. Positive correlations were significant among log10 EC50 values for propiconazole, fenarimol, and myclobutanil but not between triadimefon and any of the other three fungicides, indicating cross-resistance relationships in this pathogen may not be universal among the DMIs. In greenhouse experiments, propiconazole-treated bentgrass was inoculated with seven isolates of S. homoeocarpa differing in sensitivity to propiconazole. Incubation period decreased and relative area under the disease progress curve and disease severity 28 days after inoculation increased linearly with increasing log10 EC50 value of the isolate. Results of this study confirm a significant relationship between in vitro sensitivity of S. homoeocarpa and in planta control efficacy of propiconazole and provide evidence of field resistance to propiconazole in S. homoeocarpa in Georgia.

Baseline Sensitivity and Cross-Resistance to Succinate-Dehydrogenase-Inhibiting and Demethylation-Inhibiting Fungicides in Didymella bryoniae

Didymella bryoniae, which causes gummy stem blight (GSB) of watermelon, has a history of developing resistance to fungicides, most recently the succinate-dehydrogenase-inhibiting (SDHI) fungicide boscalid. To facilitate fungicide resistance monitoring, baseline sensitivity distributions were established for demethylation-inhibiting (DMI) fungicides tebuconazole and difenoconazole and the SDHI fungicide penthiopyrad, and reestablished for the SDHI fungicide boscalid. In all, 71 isolates with no known prior exposure to SDHIs or DMIs were used to determine the effective concentration at which mycelial growth was inhibited by 50% (EC50). EC50 values for boscalid, penthiopyrad, tebuconazole, and difenoconazole were 0.018 to 0.064, 0.015 to 0.057, 0.062 to 0.385, and 0.018 to 0.048 μg/ml, with median values of 0.032, 0.026, 0.118, and 0.031 μg/ml, respectively. Significant positive correlations between the sensitivity to penthiopyrad and boscalid (P < 0.0001, r = 0.75) and between tebuconazole and difenoconazole (P < 0.0001, r = 0.59) indicate a potential for cross-resistance between chemically related fungicides. In 2009, 103 isolates from fungicidetreated watermelon fields were tested for sensitivity to boscalid and penthiopyrad using a discriminatory concentration of 3.0 μg/ml. Of the isolates tested, 82 were insensitive and 14 were sensitive to both fungicides. Because of the significant potential for cross-resistance between closely related fungicides, growers will be advised not to use both SDHIs or both DMIs successively in the same fungicide spray program.

Characterization of Early Leaf Spot Suppression by Strip Tillage in Peanut

ABSTRACT Epidemics of early leaf spot of peanut (Arachis hypogaea), caused by Cercospora arachidicola, are less severe in strip-tilled than conventionally tilled fields. Experiments were carried out to characterize the effect of strip tillage on early leaf spot epidemics and identify the primary target of suppression using a comparative epidemiology approach. Leaf spot intensity was assessed weekly as percent incidence or with the Florida 1-to-10 severity scale in peanut plots that were conventionally or strip tilled. The logistic model, fit to disease progress data, was used to estimate initial disease (y(0)) and epidemic rate (r) parameters. Environmental variables, inoculum abundance, and field host resistance were assessed independently. For experiments combined, estimated y(0) was less in strip-tilled than conventionally tilled plots, and r was comparable. The epidemic was delayed in strip-tilled plots by an average of 5.7 and 11.7 days based on incidence and severity, respectively. Tillage did not consistently affect mean canopy temperature, relative humidity, or frequency of environmental records favorable for infection or spore dispersal. Host response to infection was not affected by tillage, but infections were detected earlier and at higher frequencies with noninoculated detached leaves from conventionally tilled plots. These data suggest that strip tillage delays early leaf spot epidemics due to fewer initial infections; most likely a consequence of less inoculum being dispersed to peanut leaves from overwintering stroma in the soil.

Effects of Row Pattern, Seeding Rate, and Inoculation Date on Fungicide Efficacy and Development of Peanut Stem Rot

Two field studies were conducted in 2000, 2001, and 2002 to determine the effects of row pattern (91.4-cm single or 20.3-cm twin) and seeding rate (single: 12.5, 17.4, or 22.6 seed m-1or twin: 6.2, 8.9, or 11.5 seed m-1) on peanut stem rot (Sclerotium rolfsii) development. The first study was conducted in a naturally infested field and relative efficacy of azoxystrobin (Abound 2.08 F, applied at a rate of 0.3 kg a.i. ha-1 at 60 and 90 days after planting [DAP]) also was evaluated. In this study, stem rot incidence was significantly greater (P < 0.05) in single rows planted at high seeding rates than in twin rows planted at any of the seeding rates. Row pattern did not affect azoxystrobin efficacy, and disease incidence was nearly half as much in twin rows treated with fungicide than incidence in single rows treated with fungicide. In the second field study, individual peanut plants in fumigated plots were inoculated once with S. rolfsii at 50, 70, or 90 DAP. Stem rot incidence at harvest was significantly greater on plants inoculated 50 DAP than plants inoculated 70 or 90 DAP. The incidence of spread to adjacent rows was higher in plots where plants were inoculated at 50 than at 90 DAP. Plants inoculated 90 DAP had less disease at harvest, but often developed more severe symptoms within the first week after inoculation compared with plants inoculated 50 or 70 DAP. Symptoms were more severe in single than in twin rows, and at the higher seeding rates. Data from these studies suggest that the physical spacing between plants is a critical factor in stem rot development both on individual plants and in plant populations.

Phylogeny of the pecan scab fungus Fusicladium effusum G. Winter based on the cytochrome b gene sequence

Pecan scab, caused by the fungus Fusicladium effusum, is the most devastating disease of pecan (Carya illinoinensis) trees and is responsible for the majority of disease management efforts applied to that crop. The taxonomy of the fungus changed several times in the last decade and most recently, using ITS nrDNA data and conventional taxonomic methods, the organism was renamed F. effusum. In our study, a conserved region of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene was sequenced from three isolates of F. effusum. The obtained sequences showed 95% nucleic acid and 100% amino acid homology (201–266 amino acids on exon 5 of the cytochrome b gene) with Venturia inaequalis (NCBI GenBank accession number AF047029). And in the maximum parsimony tree based on nucleotide sequences, F. effusum and V. inaequalis were clustered, with a 92% bootstrap value. The taxonomic classification of the pecan scab fungus was supported based on the cytochrome b region.

Components of Resistance to Rhizoctonia solani Associated with Two Tall Fescue Cultivars

Components of resistance to Rhizoctonia solani in the tall fescue cultivars Kentucky 31 (moderately resistant) and Mojave (susceptible) were evaluated under controlled environmental conditions. Size and expansion rate of foliar lesions were recorded on 100 individual plants of each cultivar. Lesions on the first fully expanded leaves of 6- to 10-month-old inoculated plants covered a significantly greater proportion of the leaf width on cv. Mojave compared to Kentucky 31. Rate of lesion expansion was also greater on cv. Mojave than on Kentucky 31. Lesion size and rate of expansion were greater on the second compared to the first fully expanded leaf of both cultivars. Wider leaves and slower lesion expansion are two components responsible for the greater level of resistance to R. solani in cv. Kentucky 31 compared to Mojave tall fescue.