Effects of tillage method and fallow frequency on leaf spotting diseases of spring wheat in the semiarid Canadian prairies

Leaf spotting diseases of wheat (Triticum spp.) are widespread in western Canada. Because these diseases are residue-borne, they are expected to be affected by changes in the quality and quantity of crop residues. A field study was conducted to determine the effects of summerfallow and tillage practices on leaf spotting diseases of spring wheat (T. aestivum L.) in the semiarid area of the western Canadian prairies. Leaf spot severity was greater in wheat grown after fallow than in continuous wheat when these systems were managed using either cultivator- or zero-tillage methods. Disease severity in wheat after fallow was similar in all three tillage methods: cultivator-, reduced-, and zero-tillage. Pyrenophora tritici-repentis (Died.) Drechs. (tan spot) was the pathogen most commonly isolated from lesioned leaf tissue. Crop residues collected in the spring of 1995 and 1996 from cultivator- and zero-tillage treatments were examined for the presence and density of fungal infective structures. The density of mature and immature structures, especially of P. tritici-repentis, was greater in residues from two years previous than in those from the previous growing season. Most of the residues in the continuous wheat system were from the previous crop. The apparent lower amount of initial inoculum available in a continuous wheat system than in wheat grown after fellow would explain the higher leaf spotting severity in the latter system. In addition, lower levels of infective structures on residues were found in wheat after fallow in zero- rather than in cultivator-tillage. However, similar disease levels in cultivator- and zero-tillage treatments suggest that the more favourable microclimate for disease development in a zero-tillage system might have compensated for the lower amounts of residue-borne inoculum. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.