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Title: Pathogenicity of three isolates of Rhizoctonia sp. from wheat and peanut on hard red winter wheat

Author
item SREEDHARAN, ASWATHY - Oklahoma State University
item HUNGER, ROBERT - Oklahoma State University
item SINGLETON, LARRY - Oklahoma State University
item PAYTON, MARK - Oklahoma State University
item Melouk, Hassan

Submitted to: International Journal of Agricultural Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/15/2009
Publication Date: 3/15/2010
Citation: Sreedharan, A., Hunger, R.M., Singleton, L.L., Payton, M.E., Melouk, H.A. 2010. Pathogenicity of three isolates of Rhizoctonia sp. from wheat and peanut on hard red winter wheat. International Journal of Agricultural Research. 5(3):132-147.

Interpretive Summary: Winter wheat and peanut are two important agricultural commodities in the United States. In 2008, winter wheat was planted on nearly 14 million ha from which just over 1.5 billion bushels of grain was harvested; peanut was planted on nearly 610 thousand ha from which just over 5.1 billion pounds of peanut were harvested. Crop rotation of wheat and peanut can be advantageous under certain cropping conditions in Oklahoma. A root disease caused by the fungus Rhizoctonia solani infects both wheat and peanut, and therefore, there is a greater potential for economic damage to wheat grown in Oklahoma due to the greater importance of this crop to the state’s economy. This research was conducted to compare the ability of three Rhizoctonia isolates, one of which was originated from peanut, for causing damage to wheat. The Rhizoctonia isolate from peanut was found to cause significant reduction of seedling emergence in both early- and late-planted wheat, and also reduced forage production in early-planted wheat in fumigated soil. These results suggest that Rhizoctonia from peanut (a warm weather crop) is more virulent on wheat at higher soil temperatures associated with early planting, whereas Rhizoctonia isolates obtained from wheat (a cool weather crop) are more pathogenic on wheat at lower soil temperatures associated with late planting. Hence, soil temperature as affected by planting date should be considered in areas where wheat is planted following peanut if root disease caused by Rhizoctonia spp. is a concern.

Technical Abstract: Rhizoctonia-induced root diseases can significantly affect wheat and peanut production where these two field crops are grown in rotation. Hence, this study characterized two isolates of Rhizoctonia spp. from wheat [R. cerealis (RC) and R. solani (RSW)] and one from peanut [R. solani (RSP) ] for cultural traits and pathogenicity on hard red winter wheat (HRWW). RSP had a higher optimum temperature than RC and RSW for growth (hyphal extension) on media (25 to 27.5 deg C versus 20 to 25 deg C), seedling emergence, shoot and root weight, and disease severity (>/=25 deg C versus <25 deg C). Of six HRWW cultivars tested, TAM 101, Tonkawa, and Custer demonstrated some resistance to RSP at 30 deg C. Field trials revealed that RC and RSW significantly reduced seedling emergence in late-planted wheat when soil temperature was cool (<27 deg C), but did not reduce seedling emergence in early-planted wheat when soil temperature was high (>35 deg C). In contrast, RSP significantly reduced seedling emergence in both early- and late-planted wheat, and also reduced forage production in early-planted wheat in fumigated soil. Results suggest that Rhizoctonia from peanut (a warm weather crop) are more virulent on wheat at higher soil temperatures associated with early planting, whereas Rhizoctonia obtained from wheat (a cool weather crop) are more pathogenic on wheat at lower soil temperatures associated with late planting. Hence, soil temperature as affected by planting date should be considered in areas where wheat is planted following peanut if root disease caused by Rhizoctonia spp. is a concern.