CEREAL RUST BULLETIN Report No. 1 March 25, 1997 Issued by: Cereal Rust Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Dept. of Agriculture University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108 (612) 625-6299 FAX (612) 649-5054 Internet: markh@puccini.crl.umn.edu CRL web page: http://www.umn.edu/rustlab/ ***************************************************************************** * Leaf rust is severe from southern Georgia to southern Texas. Leaf rust that overwintered was increasing in the southern tier of Kansas counties. ***************************************************************************** Adequate moisture during late winter has resulted in good cereal growth throughout most of the area from southern Georgia to Texas. In southern and central Texas the wheat growth stage is more variable than normal for this time of the year, probably because of the wet fall which resulted in a wide range of planting dates. In Kansas and Oklahoma most of the wheat crop is in good condition and there has been minimal winter injury. Wheat stem rust No wheat stem rust has been found in the U.S. as of March 24. Wheat leaf rust In mid-March, wheat leaf rust was heavier than normal in plots and fields of susceptible soft (FFR 525 and Jackson) and hard (2163 and Karl) wheats throughout southern and central Texas By late March, wheat leaf rust was severe in plots of susceptible soft red winter wheat cultivars in southern Louisiana and southern Georgia. This year leaf rust in the southern wheat growing area of the U.S. is much more severe than last year on the same date. More leaf rust overwintered in the Great Plains this year than last year. In late November, leaf rust was found in many locations in Oklahoma and Kansas. In mid-March, overwintered leaf rust was found in the southern tier of Kansas counties, and with the warmer temperatures the rust was increasing. From leaf rust collections that were made in November in Kansas and Oklahoma the following Prt races were identified: MBRL from cultivars 2137, 2163, Custer; MBDL from Jagger; TDBL, MCBL from Chisholm; and TFRL from Custer. In 1996, MBRL was the most commonly identified race and the MBDL race has been identified from Jagger every year since 1993. Wheat stripe rust As of late March, there have been no reports of wheat stripe rust in the U.S. We would appreciate any reports of wheat stripe rust occurrence. NOTE: Stripe rust is vulnerable to heat and does not survive long at warm temperatures; therefore, if shipment of collections for race identification is delayed their viability will be poor. Please send wheat stripe rust collections (10 or more rusted green leaves) as soon as possible after collecting to: Dr. Roland Line, USDA-ARS, 361 Johnson Hall, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-6430. Oat stem rust In mid-February, traces of oat stem rust were found in the nursery plots at Beeville in southern Texas. Oat crown rust By late February, crown rust was increasing in south Texas plots, and in mid-March rust was severe in south Louisiana plots. The rust at these two locations is much more severe this year than last year. Barley stem and leaf rust As of late March, no stem or leaf rust has been reported on barley in the U.S. this year. Limited amounts of barley are grown commercially in the southern states. Stem rust rarely occurs on barley in this area. Barley stripe rust In early March, ³hot spots ³ of barley stripe rust were observed in nurseries and variety strip tests on the Davis, California Agronomy farm. For race identification please send barley stripe rust collections (10 or more rusted green leaves) as soon as possible after collecting to: Dr. Roland Line, USDA-ARS, 361 Johnson Hall, Washington State University, Pullman, WA 99164-6430. Rye rusts As of March 24, no leaf or stem rust of rye has been reported in the U.S. We are posting current Cereal Rust Bulletins on our home page (http://www.umn.edu/rustlab/). We hope that this will provide a convenient and timely way for many of you to receive the information. If you currently receive the Cereal Rust Bulletin by regular mail but would prefer to receive it by email, please send a message to Mark Hughes (markh@puccini.crl.umn.edu) so that you may be added to our CRB email distribution list. If you currently receive the CRBıs by email and would rather visit our home page to get the bulletins, please send an email message to Mark Hughes (markh@puccini.crl.umn.edu). Individuals who make the switch from receiving their bulletins by email to visiting the home page will still get a short email message to let them know when the latest CRB is posted on the home page. We are particularly excited about the possibilities our home page offers. In addition to the Cereal Rust Bulletins, we are adding other items dealing with the cereal rusts. In an attempt to provide all interested individuals with the latest news on the cereal rust situation in the U.S., we plan to post messages from our cooperators which relate to the cereal rust situation in the U.S. If you have information on the cereal rust situation (or other small grain diseases) that you would like to share, please email your info to David Long (davidl@puccini.crl.umn.edu) and to Mark Hughes at (markh@puccini.crl.umn.edu) or call Dave (612-625-1284). We would like to include your name and email address so others could contact you. If, however, you prefer not to have your name or email address appear with the information, we will omit them. Posting these messages will supplement the Cereal Rust Bulletins by making cooperatorsı reports available on the home page as they come in. Of course, we will continue to incorporate these reports into the regular issues of the Cereal Rust Bulletin. Generally, the Cereal Rust Bulletins are compiled every two weeks during the crop season. We welcome all comments or suggestions on how we can improve the bulletins or our home page. Reports on distribution of races of cereal rust fungi are an important part of our surveys as reported in the Cereal Rust Bulletin. We regularly collect and test isolates of stem rust (wheat, oat, and barley), wheat leaf rust, and oat crown rust. We appreciate receiving collections of these rusts from cooperators around the U.S. If you would like to contribute, please contact Dave Long or Mark Hughes, and they will send you a packet of collection envelopes and forms.