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ARS Home » Plains Area » Fargo, North Dakota » Edward T. Schafer Agricultural Research Center » Sugarbeet and Potato Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #379438
Research Project: Increasing Sugar Beet Productivity and Sustainability through Genetic and Physiological Approaches

Location: Sugarbeet and Potato Research

Title: Effect of Cercospora leaf spot on sugarbeet root storage properties

Author
item Eide, John
item HAKK, PETER - North Dakota State University
item LAFTA, ABBAS - North Dakota State University
item KHAN, MOHAMED - North Dakota State University
item Fugate, Karen

Submitted to: Meeting Abstract
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/16/2020
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Cercospora leaf spot (CLS), caused by Cercospora beticola Sacc., is one of the most damaging foliar diseases of sugarbeet worldwide. CLS has traditionally been controlled by fungicides, although increasing tolerance of the pathogen to many of the chemistries utilized for control has caused not only the prevalence and severity of CLS to increase, but also the likelihood that roots from CLS-diseased plants are incorporated into storage piles. Effective management of storage piles requires knowledge of the effect of CLS on root storage properties. These effects, however, are largely unknown. Therefore, research was conducted to determine the impact of varying levels of CLS disease severity on sugarbeet root storage properties including respiration rate, sucrose concentration, invert sugar accumulation, sugar loss to molasses, and recoverable sugar per ton after different durations in storage. Roots were obtained from field plots that were inoculated with C. beticola-infected leaves and treated with varying number and type of fungicide applications to achieve a range of disease levels. Roots were then stored at 5°C and 95% relative humidity and storage properties were evaluated after 30, 90, and 120 days in storage. From data collected in the first two years of a three-year study, moderate to severe levels of CLS negatively affected root yield, sucrose content, recoverable sugar per ton, and recoverable sugar per acre at harvest. CLS, at any severity level, however, had no effect on root respiration rate, sucrose concentration, invert sugar accumulation, sugar loss to molasses, or loss in recoverable sugar per ton after short- or long-term storage. These results indicate that CLS, at any level of disease severity, has no detectable impact on sugarbeet root storage properties. Results, however, should be considered preliminary until all years of the research study are complete.