HRS Wheat Variety Response to Foliar Fungicide

wo trials were conducted by the Carrington Research Extension Center in 2004 to evaluate agronomic performance of selected hard red spring (HRS) wheat varieties with Folicur.

Trial 1 was an irrigated trial conducted at Carrington with 'Granger', ‘Reeder’, and an experimental HRS wheat line planted on 2003 corn ground (with supplemental wheat straw) at 1 and 1.75 million pure live seeds (pls)/acre (A) on May 17. Folicur at 4 fl oz/A + NIS (Induce) at 0.125% v/v was applied in mid July to early-flowering stage (Feekes 10.51) wheat with a hand-boom plot sprayer equipped with 8002 twin jet nozzles delivering 16 gpa at 40 psi. Flag leaf disease (tan spot and Septoria spp.), leaf rust, and Fusarium head blight (scab) were visually evaluated at the soft-dough stage. The seeding rate of 1 and 1.75 million pls/A established 927,000 and 1,387,000 seedling plants/A, respectively. Seed yield and test weight were slightly higher with the lower seeding rate (Table 1). Scab incidence was 7.5% and vomitoxin was 1.6% with Folicur compared to the untreated check having 23.5% scab incidence and 2.9% vomitoxin (Table 2). Folicur also reduced flag leaf disease and leaf rust. Compared to the untreated check, Folicur improved yield by 10.7 bu/A and test weight by 1.1 lb/bu. Vomitoxin, leaf disease, and leaf rust reduction with Folicur was greater with Reeder compared to Granger (Table 3). Folicur improved yield 18.6 bu/A with Reeder compared to the untreated check while yield increase with Granger was 8.0 bu/A. In addition, use of Folicur provided a greater test weight and kernel weight response with Reeder compared to Granger.

Trial 2 was conducted near Dazey, ND, as part of the Carrington Center’s HRS wheat variety trial. The 25 cultivars and experimental lines in the trial were planted April 27 at 1.2 million pls/A on previous soybean ground. Folicur at 4 fl oz/A + NIS (Preference) at 0.125% v/v was applied July 7 to early-head emergence to flowering-stage wheat in 2 of 4 trial replications with a tractor-mounted sprayer equipped with 8002 flat-fan nozzles delivering 18 gpa. Flag leaf disease (tan spot and Septoria spp.), leaf rust, and Fusarium head blight (scab) were visually evaluated across the trial at the soft-dough stage on July 28. Averaged across varieties, yield was 83.6 bu/A with Folicur compared to 71.0 bu/A without fungicide, while test weight and protein were similar. Leaf disease averaged 4% across varieties treated with Foliar compared to 39% without fungicide. However, leaf rust and scab levels were generally low and did not differ between Folicur and untreated checks. Seed yield response to Folicur compared to untreated occurred with eight cultivars (bu/A increase): Reeder (24.5), Ingot (23.0), Oklee (19.5), Norpro (17.0), Freyer (16.1), Oxen (16.0), Russ (11.9) and Parshall (11.2). Test weight response to Folicur compared to untreated occurred with four cultivars (lb/bu increase): Oxen (3.1), Reeder (2.5), and Ingot and Russ (2.1).

CREC spring wheat off-station variety trial near Dazey, ND.