Wheat Production and Wheat Rust Management in Canada

Abstract

Wheat is Canada's the largest crop with most of the production in the western Canadian Prairie Provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta. There were approximately 10 million (M) hectares (hm2) seeded to wheat in Canada, including 7 M hm2 of hexaploid spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.), 2 M hm2 of durum wheat (T. turgidum L. ssp. durum (Desf.) Husn.), and 1 M hm2 of winter wheat (T. aestivum). Within hexaploid wheat there has been diversification into a number of market classes based on different end-use quality criteria. The predominant spring bread wheat class has been the Canada Western Red Spring (CWRS) class. Historically, the disease of major concern in wheat was stem rust, caused by Puccinia graminis f. sp. tritici. The first significant stem rust resistant cultivar in Canada was Thatcher, grown extensively from 1939 until the early 1970s. Thatcher, however, was very susceptible to leaf rust, caused by Puccinia triticina. Over years, improved resistance to both stem and leaf rust was achieved with the release of cultivars with additional genes for resistance, primarily Sr2, Sr6, Sr7a, Sr9b, Lr13, Lr14a, Lr16, and Lr34. The genetic resistance has adequately controlled stem rust but leaf rust continues to cause significant loss, partially due to changes in the P. triticina population which reduced the effectiveness of resistance genes such as Lr13 and Lr16. Stripe rust on wheat, caused by Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici, was historically a problem under irrigation in southern Alberta, but since 2000, it has been found annually in the central Canadian prairies and southern Ontario. The genetic basis of resistance to stripe rust in most Canadian wheat cultivars has not been determined, although Yr18 provides partial resistance in many cultivars. In the future, other rust diseases, such as wheat stripe rust, or highly virulent new pathotypes of current rust pathogens, such as P. graminis f. sp. tritici race Ug-99, may pose new threats to cereal production in Canada. Long-term research and breeding on cereal rust in Canada is currently the best strategy to combat these problems. A strategic approach to incorporating durable forms of resistance, efficient gene deployment, and pyramiding of resistance genes should be considered to maximize the genetic resources available to control wheat rust.