The impact of crop rotation and N fertilizer on common root rot of spring wheat in the Brown soil zone of western Canada

Abstract

From 2000 to 2003, spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) grown in southwest Saskatchewan 1 or 2 yr after summerfallow, and after lentil (Lens culinaris Medik), flax (Linum usitatissimum L.), or continuously with and without fertilizer N was examined for root rot by measuring discoloration of subcrown internodes. Discolored tissue was also plated on nutrient agar for fungal identification. In general, common root rot was present at consistently highest levels in wheat grown after lentil, and at lowest levels in wheat grown continuously with low N fertility. The most common fungal species isolated from affected subcrown internodes were Cochliobolus sativus (Ito and Kurib.) Drechs. ex Dast. and Fusarium spp. Among the latter, F. avenaceum (Fr.) Sacc., F. equiseti (Corda) Sacc. and F. pseudograminearum O’Donnell & T. Aoki were most frequent. Fusarium avenaceum is one of the most common fusarium head blight pathogens in Saskatchewan. Wheat after lentil had one of the highest levels of this fungus. Continuous wheat grown with recommended N rates and wheat grown after summerfallow had in most cases similar root rot levels, but the frequency of fungi differed. Among the crop rotations examined, it appears that the most favourable for development of root rot in wheat was a wheat-lentil rotation. This cereal-pulse system may also contribute to a build-up of F. avenaceum inoculum for the development of fusarium head blight, an important emerging disease of cereals in Saskatchewan. Key words: Crop rotation, common root rot, wheat, Cochliobolus sativus, Fusarium, nitrogen