Yellow or Stripe Rust of Wheat

Stripe (Yellow) Rust of Wheat:

Description and Importance:

  • Generally occur throughout wheat production areas at low temperature
  • Losses due to this are 50-55% with some field destroyed completely 

Etiology:

Causal organism: Puccinia striformis f.sp. tritici

Order: Uredinales

Family: Puccinaceae

Symptoms:

  • Small yellowish uredia appear in narrow linear rows on the leaf.
  • Uredia can also be seen on spikes.
  • Yellow spore mass is exposed for wind dispersal.
  • Plants show poorly developed root system

Disease cycle:

  • Uredospores are single source of inoculum
  • Inoculum comes from volunteer plants
  • Fungus survive between crop seasons by dormant mycelium & uredia
  • Windblown uredospores are secondary source 

Epidemiology:

  • Free water on leaves & temp 0-25°C required for spore germination
  • Appear in Dec, Jan, opt temp 12.8-18.3°C

Management:

  • Resistant varieties (Anaj 2017, Akbar 2019)
  • Cultivation of early sowing and early maturing varieties.
  •  Avoiding thick sowing and heavy irrigation.
  •  Avoiding heavy doses of nitrogenous fertilizers.
  •  Judicious use of potassic fertilizer help in minimizing the susceptibility of plants
  • Use fungicides i.e. Nativo, Bayleton, Tilt