Loose smut in barley
- Central grainbelt (Northam)
- Eastern grainbelt (Merredin and Yilgarn)
Plant pathologist Dr Kylie Chambers (DPIRD) has recently been finding loose smut in barley crops in the central (Northam) and eastern grainbelt (Merredin and Yilgarn).
Barley loose smut is a fungal disease affecting seed heads, which can cause yield losses.
In plants grown from infected seed, florets are replaced with a compact mass of dark brown-black powdery spores at heading. These spores are dispersed by wind to infect adjacent plants and produce the next generation of infected seed. Infection is favoured by rainfall and high humidity during flowering.
When examining your paddock, look for scattered plants with black heads or bare flower stalks. Infected seed is symptomless, and presence of infected plants in the source paddock is a good indicator of risk of harvesting infected seed.
Management
Infected seed is the primary disease source, and highly contaminated seed should not be re-sown.
Transmission of infection from seed can be easily and effectively managed with a registered fungicide seed dressing.
Research conducted by Dr Kithsiri Jayasena (DPIRD) has found high label rates of a tebuconazole-based product, applied during flowering, can also reduce seed borne loose smut embryo infection on susceptible barley.
For more information on barley loose smut, refer to the Department's webpages:
- Diagnosing barley loose smut.
- Controlling barley loose smut.
- Smut and bunt diseases of cereal - biology, identification and management.
For more information, contact Plant pathologists Kithsiri Jayasena in Albany on +61 (0)8 9892 8477, Geoff Thomas in South Perth on +61 (0)8 9368 3262, Andrea Hills in Esperance on +61 (0)8 9083 1144, Ciara Beard in Geraldton on +61 (0)8 9956 8504 or Kylie Chambers in Northam on +61 (0)8 9690 2151.
Article authors: Cindy Webster (DPIRD Narrogin), Kithsiri Jayasena (DPIRD Albany), Andrea Hills (DPIRD Esperance) and Ciara Beard (DPIRD Geraldton).
Article input: Kylie Chambers (DPIRD Northam) and Geoff Thomas (DPIRD South Perth).