WERA_OLD97: DISEASES OF CEREALS

(Multistate Research Coordinating Committee and Information Exchange Group)

Status: Inactive/Terminating

WERA_OLD97: DISEASES OF CEREALS

Duration: 10/01/2005 to 09/30/2010

Administrative Advisor(s):


NIFA Reps:


Non-Technical Summary

Statement of Issues and Justification

The cereal grains, particularly wheat and barley, constitute major cash crops throughout the western region of the United States. The types of cereal grains produced are diverse, including soft white winter, soft white spring, club, hard red winter, hard red spring, and durum wheat classes; 2-row and 6-row winter and spring feed and malting barley types; hay, grain and/or forage oat types; and grain and/or forage triticale types. Areas of production for these diverse crops overlap throughout the western region, and production occurs in both high and low rainfall areas, with or without irrigation, and under a wide-range of other production inputs (level of fertilization and degree of weed, insect, and disease control inputs). Production is geared for bulk commodity and specialized niche domestic markets as well as for export. Diseases of cereals are diverse in their number and dynamic in their annual economic impact. Cereal producers, striving to maximize economic returns and reduce production costs, are adopting changes in tillage and cultural practices such as direct seeding (i.e., minimum or no-till), shorter rotations, earlier fall seeding, increased soil fertility, and, where water is available, more frequent irrigation. All of the above factors have profound effects on cereal diseases, which are or may become serious threats to cereal grain production. Cereal producers are desperate for assistance to reduce operating costs and minimize disease losses. Diseases caused by newly introduced or detected pathogens, and variants (i.e., new races) of current pathogens, pose especially serious threats. Heightened Homeland Security concerns following the attacks of September 11, 2001 have focused attention on the importance of food security in the United States and on the vulnerability of agriculture to introduced or existing pathogens and pests. President Bush signed into law the Agricultural Bioterrorism Protection Act of 2002 to address that threat and CSREES followed by establishing the Animal & Plant Disease and Pest Surveillance & Detection Network. The National Plant Diagnostic Network, divided into five regions (with the Western Plant Diagnostic Network based at the University of California, Davis, and the Great Plains Plant Diagnostic Network based at Kansas State University), focuses on plant diseases and pests. This program complements the Invasive Species Program (established by Executive Order by Former President Clinton in 1999) that mandates a management plan which identifies, monitors, and interdicts pathways that may be involved in the introduction of invasive species. With its links between research, extension, and industry, WERA-97 is ideally suited to play key roles in these efforts. Karnal bunt of wheat was a dramatic and economically serious example of an introduced species that affected a crop in the United States; its detection (initially in March, 1996, in Arizona) caused major disruptions in United States grain trade with 21 countries and the economic ramifications remain unclear. More recently (2000-2004), epidemics of wheat stripe rust affected wheat growing regions across the country as new races of Puccinia striiformis developed and became established. Stripe rust caused extensive losses (USDA-ARS Cereal Disease Laboratory estimated the loss to wheat stripe rust in 2003 at nearly 89 million bushels). Other cereal diseases have recently invaded the region or have emerged as important damaging diseases. Barley stripe rust, which appeared in the United States for the first time in 1991 and caused severe epidemics in the late 1990s, is similar to wheat stripe rust with regard to the establishment of many new races and thus is a threat to all barley varieties used by the malting and feed barley industry. High Plains disease, first detected in 1993, caused major yield losses in corn in several states including Idaho, Utah, and Colorado, and continues to threaten the wheat, barley and corn industry throughout the Great Plains and Intermountain states. Fusarium head blight (scab) spread from the Corn Belt states into the Great Plains, causing millions of bushels in lost production, numerous farm and equipment sales, and disruption of farm families and whole communities. Over the next several decades, increased emphasis on disease prevention/control will be required to enable growers to remain competitive in the international market, and to meet the demand for control measures with less adverse environmental impacts. WERA-97 is the only specific regional body providing for coordination of research, extension, and education on diseases of cereals in the western region. With the decline in overall support for agricultural research, continued coordination and exchange of research information among states in the western region is crucial for efficient allocation of a shrinking resource base. Current member states include California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Washington. The Committee welcomes participation and input from states outside the region and is reaching out to currently non-participating western states (Arizona and New Mexico) to solicit their involvement. The joint meetings with the Western Wheat Workers at Davis, California, in 2001, at Pendleton, Oregon, in 2003, and at Pullman, Washington, in 2004 are good examples of the Committee reaching out to a wider spectrum of researchers and disciplines related to plant pathology.

Objectives

  1. Provide a forum for the communication and coordination of cooperative efforts in cereal pathology research, extension and education in the western United States through the annual meeting.
  2. Enhance cooperative research among committee members and their respective states, thereby achieving maximum efficiency, through the exchange of biological materials and methodologies, the internet, and the publication of appropriate research and extension materials.
  3. Coordinate Extension programs for cereal disease control that will carry research results to growers via publications, commodity schools, and the internet. This will be especially important to cereal producers in the region dealing with emerging and reemerging diseases including Karnal bunt, barley stripe rust, wheat stripe rust, root lesion nematodes, Fusarium head blight (scab), net blotch, tan spot, wheat streak mosaic, and High plains disease.

Procedures and Activities

Together WERA-97 members have mounted coordinated rapid responses to five emerging disease problems in recent years including Karnal bunt, High Plains Disease, barley stripe rust, wheat stripe rust and Fusarium head blight (scab). These responses included educating members on diagnosis of the new or emerging disease problem, establishing monitoring networks to follow pathogen populations and the coordinated development of effective controls while minimizing duplication of effort. For persistent problems such as Cephalosporium stripe, Stagnospora leaf blotch and common root rot, members have shared research methods, resistant germplasm and control strategies as well as collaborated on research projects. In 2004, WERA-97 has welcomed a new member for Montana (Dr. Alan Dyer) and expects to welcome additional new members for North Dakota, South Dakota and Idaho as vacated positions in those states are filled. With four new cereal pathologists in the next couple of years, WERA-97 will be vital to their education, and career development. WERA-97 represents the chief forum for organizing regional research, education and extension efforts on diseases of small grains. Its accomplishments relate not only to the visible contributions of WERA-97 members but also to a more efficient allocation of resources to address the disease problems facing western cereal producers. Examples of major accomplishments include: * Members of WERA-97 devised monitoring sites and procedures for the High Plains disease of corn and wheat so that potential inoculum sources could be determined. A network of Committee members continues to survey for Karnal bunt in wheat throughout the region and has played an important role in determining how best to handle this disease as it is found in states outside the initial infestation sites in California and Arizona. * WERA-97 acted as a forum for coordination of research activities within the western region on both wheat stripe rust (WSR) and barley stripe rust (BSR). Members of the Committee were involved in the initial detection of BSR and later developed methods for monitoring its progress. Now that it is firmly established in the region, efforts on breeding for resistance are proving fruitful and continued screening for new sources of resistance is being coordinated by several members of the Committee. Expanded efforts on WSR following the epidemics of 2000-2004 and the rapid development and establishment of new races has stimulated an increased effort for integrated control of WSR, the development of a National Research Initiative for WSR, and an expanded screening program to identify new sources of both seedling and adult plant resistance for the Western Region. * WERA-97 has educated its own members, and other invited academic and industry participants such as the Western Wheat Workers group and Western Plant Breeders. For instance, participants have learned that Take-all root rot damage is related to the distance of inoculum from a newly-seeded plant. By using precision planting equipment to drill into no-till wheat residue between the rows instead of across the rows of old crowns, seed can be placed the maximum distance from the take-all inoculum. The result of this practice is a reduced level of disease. Participants have also learned that nematodes (Pratylenchus and Tylenchorhynchus spp) are more serious pest problems in some semi-arid regions than previously recognized. Participants have acquired technical knowledge to evaluate potential nematode problems within their own states. * To enhance communication and coordination, WERA-97 established a website (http://plantsciences.montana.edu/wera97/Default.htm) and an electronic bulletin board (wcc97@listserv.montana.edu). These serve committee members and our clientele by providing useful information in a timely manner and permit rapid dissemination of information. In addition, WERA-97 has been actively involved in facilitating the publication of materials regarding cereal diseases for use by farmers, extension personnel, and researchers. It played a critical role in publication of the Compendium of Barley Diseases, the Compendium of Wheat Diseases, Wheat Health Management, and Morecrop, an expert system for integrated management of cereal diseases.

Expected Outcomes and Impacts

  • Improved communication among committee members and their respective states, thereby achieving maximum efficiency of research efforts.
  • WERA-97 will position researchers, extension personnel, and growers to respond to disease problems more effectively through early identification of new and emerging cereal diseases, increased intra-regional cooperation, and more rapid exchange of information on techniques and control strategies.
  • Use of the Internet and e-mail will allow researchers to communicate early detection of diseases as they develop.

Projected Participation

View Appendix E: Participation

Educational Plan

Research, extension, and teaching members involved with the Committee will communicate with and invite participation by plant pathologists from the USDA and private industry. Currently, at least one-third of our members have Extension appointments. Through them, information will be provided to growers on emerging and/or new disease problems in their areas. Members of the Committee played a major role in the production of the 2nd edition of the Compendium of Barley Diseases and will play a major role in the production of the next edition of the Compendium of Wheat Diseases.

Organization/Governance

The Chairman is elected at the annual meeting and serves the following year. This person serves as a liaison with the Administrative Advisor to see that all required annual reports are submitted to the office of the Executive Director, Western Association of Agricultural Experiment Station Directors. The Chairman directs the activities of the Committee and makes sure that the objectives of the Committee are fulfilled. The following year's meeting of the Committee usually is at the home base of the Chairman, who then also serves as local arrangements chair. Minutes of the meeting, state reports, and information about the activities of WERA-97 are posted on the Committees website (http://plantsciences.montana.edu/wera97/Default.htm). Meetings normally alternate among the Great Plains and western states, although alternate sites are sometimes selected to expand committee perspectives and impacts. For example, the 2005 site will be the Lethbridge Research Centre of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada in Lethbridge, Alberta and the 2006 meeting will be held jointly with NCERA-184, our sister committee, in Fargo, North Dakota.

Literature Cited

Extension & Technical publications: Bockus, W.W. 2004. Evaluation of foliar fungicides for control of tan spot of winter wheat, 2003. Fung. & Nema. Tests. Vol. 59 (published online at www.apsnet.org/online/FNtests/). Bockus, W.W., and Davis, M.A. 2004. Reaction of selected winter wheat cultivars to tan spot and leaf rust, 2003. Biol. Cult. Tests Control Plant Dis. Vol. 19 (published online at www.apsnet.org/online/BCtests/). Bockus, W.W., Fritz, A.K., and Martin, T.J. 2004. Reaction of the 2003 Kansas Intrastate Nursery to Fusarium head blight, 2003. Biol. Cult. Tests Control Plant Dis. Vol. 19 (published online at www.apsnet.org/online/BCtests/). Chen, X.M., and Wood, D.A. 2003. Control of stripe rust of spring barley with foliar fungicides, 2002. F&N Tests. 58:CF003. Chen, X.M., and Wood, D.A. 2003. Control of stripe rust of spring wheat with foliar fungicides, 2002. F&N Tests. 58:CF004. Cox, C., Bockus, W., Garrett, K., Cox, T.S., and Peters, T. 2004. Reaction of selected perennial grass accessions to barley yellow dwarf, 2003. Biol. Cult. Tests Control Plant Dis. Vol. 19 (published online at www.apsnet.org/online/BCtests/). Davis, M.A., Bockus, W.W. and Brown-Guedira, G.L. 2004. Reaction of selected winter wheat cultivars to Fusarium head blight, 2003. Biol. Cult. Tests Control Plant Dis. Vol. 19 (published online at www.apsnet.org/online/BCtests/). Fungicide Options for Managing Foliar Diseases on Wheat. University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension NF00-410 (Revised July 2004). Kim, Y., Friebe, B., and Bockus, W.W. 2003. Resistance to Take-all Root Rot is not expressed in WheatAlien Chromosome Addition and Substitution Lines. Plant Health Progress (published online at http://www.plantmanagementnetwork.org/php/2003.asp). Management Program for Rust Diseases of Wheat. University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension. NF00-559 (Revised July 2004). Management Program for Foliar Leaf Spot Diseases of Wheat. University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension. NF00-560 (Revised July 2004). Murray, T. D., L. Pritchett, S.S. Jones, and S. Lyon. 2001. Reaction of winter wheat cultivars and breeding lines to Cephalosporium stripe, 2000. Biological and Cultural Tests for Control of Plant Diseases 2001:S21. Murray, T., L. Pritchett, L. Vasquez, S. Tsai, and H. Li. 2002. Strawbreaker Foot Rot, Cephalosporium Stripe, and Snow Mold Diseases of Winter Wheat. Washington State University, Dept. of Crop and Soil Sciences Technical Report 02-1. Murray, T., L. Vasquez, H. Li, and H. Sheng. 2003. Strawbreaker Foot Rot, Cephalosporium Stripe, and Snow Mold Diseases of Winter Wheat. Washington State University, Dept. of Crop and Soil Sciences Technical Report 03-1. Peever, T. L. and T. D. Murray. 2003. First report of tan spot of wheat in the U.S. Pacific Northwest caused by Pyrenophora tritici-repentis. Plant Disease 87:203 (published on-line as D-2002-1202-02N). Roozeboom, K., Bockus, W.W., Fritz, A., Evans, P., Long, J., Martin, T.J., Schlegel, A., Witt, M., Claassen, M., Gordon, W.B., Heer, W., Janssen, K., Martin, V., Parker, E., Seabourn, B., Lamond, R., and Bennett, R. 2003. 2003 Kansas Performance Tests with Winter Wheat Varieties. Kansas AES Report of Progress 912. 29 pp. Smiley, R., R.J. Cook, and T. Paulitz. 2002. Controlling Root and Crown Diseases of Small Grain Cereals. OSU Ext. Publ. EM 8798.6p. Smiley, R.,R.J.Cook, and T.Paulitz. 2002. Seed Treatments for Small Grain Cereals. OSU Ext. Publ. EM 8797. 8 p. Wheat Disease Profiles I. University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension EC03-1884-S. Wheat Disease Profiles II. University of Nebraska Cooperative Extension EC03-1889-S. Research publications Anand, A.,T. Zhou, H.N. Trick, B.S. Gill, W.W. Bockus, and S.Muthukrishnan. 2003. Greenhouse and field testing of transgenic wheat plants stably expressing genes for thaumatin-protein, chitinase and glucanase against Fusarium graminearum. J. of Experimental Bot. 54:1101-1111. Castro, A., X.M. Chen, P.M. Hayes, and M. Johnston. 2003. Pyramiding quantitative trait locus (QTL) alleles determining resistance to barley stripe rust: effects on resistance at the seedling stage. Crop Sci. 43:651-659. Castro, A.J., X. M. Chen, P.M. Hayes, S.J. Knapp, R.F. Line, T. Toojinda, and H. Vivar. 2002. Coincident QTL which determine seedling and adult plant resistance to stripe rust in barley. Crop Sci. 42:1701-1708. Chen, X.M.,and R.F.Line. 2003. Identification of genes for resistance to Puccinia striiformis f. sp. hordei in 18 barley genotypes. Euphytica 129:127-146. Chen, X.M., M.A. Soria, G.P. Yan, J. Sun, and J. Dubcovsky. 2003. Development of sequence tagged site and cleaved amplified polymorphic sequence markers for wheat stripe rust resistance gene Yr5. Crop Sci. 43:2058-2064. Chen, X.M., M.K. Moore, E.A. Milus, D.L. Long, R.F. Line, D. Marshall, and L. Jackson. 2002. Wheat stripe rust epidemics and races of Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici in the United States in 2000. Plant Dis. 86:39-46. Cox, C. M.,T. D. Murray, and S. S.Jones. 2002. Identification of perennial wheat lines with resistance to eyespot, Cephalosporium stripe, and wheat streak mosaic. Phytopathology 92:S137. Kim, Y. and W.W. Bockus. 2003. Temperature-sensitive reaction of winter wheat cultivar AGSECO 7853 to Stagonospora nodorum. Plant Dis. 87:1125-1128. Kim, Y.K., G. Brown-Guedira, T.S. Cox, and W.W. Bockus. 2004. Inheritance of resistance to Stagonospora nodorum leaf blotch in Kansas winter wheat cultivars. Plant Disease 88:530-536. Garrett, K.S., M. Kabbage, and W.W. Bockus. 2004. Managing for fine-scale differences in inoculum load: Seeding patterns to minimize wheat yield loss to take-all. Precision Agriculture 5:291-301. Li, H.J., M. Arterburn, S.S. Jones, and T.D. Murray. 2004. A new source of resistance to Tapesia yallundae associated with a homoeologous group 4 chromosome in Thinopyrum ponticum. Phytopathology 94:932-937. Paulitz, T., R. Smiley, and R.J. Cook. 2002. Insights into the prevalence and management of soilborne cereal pathogens under direct seeding in the Pacific Northwest U.S.A. Can. J. Plant Path. 24:416-428. Peever, T. L. and T.D. Murray. 2003. First report of tan spot of wheat in the U.S. Pacific Northwest caused by Pyrenophora tritici-repentis. Plant Disease 87:203 (published on-line as D-2002-1202-02N). Smith, J.D., K.K. Kidwell, M.A. Evans, R.J. Cook, and R.W. Smiley. 2003. Evaluation of spring cereal grains and wild Triticum germplasm for resistance to Rhizoctonia solani AG-8. Crop Sci. 43:701-709. Smith, J.D., K.K. Kidwell, M.A. Evans, R.J. Cook, and R.W. Smiley. 2003. Assessment of spring wheat genotypes for disease reaction to Rhizoctonia solani AG-8 in controlled environment and direct-seeded field evaluations. Crop Sci. 43:694-700. Wiese, M. V., T. D. Murray, and R. L. Forster. 2001. Common names for diseases of wheat (Triticum spp. L.).in: Common Names for Plant Diseases. APS Press, Minneapolis. Online: http://www.apsnet.org/online/common/names/wheat.asp. Yan, G.P., X.M. Chen, R.F. Line, and C.R. Wellings. 2003. Resistance gene analog polymorphism markers co-segregating with the Yr5 gene for resistance to wheat stripe rust. Theor. Appl. Genet. 106:636-643.

Attachments

Land Grant Participating States/Institutions

CO, KS, MN, MT, OR, SD, WA, WY

Non Land Grant Participating States/Institutions

ARS-WA, Plant Science Research Unit, USDA-ARS/Washington, WestBred LLC, WestBred, LLC.
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