Comparative Assessment of Fungicidal Activity of Preparations for Presowing Treatment of Winter Wheat

Abstract

The massive use of one-component fungicides has caused the problem of the emergence of resistant forms of phytopathogens. The development of multicomponent plant protection products is one of the ways of dealing with such a situation. The aim of the study is to determine the effectiveness of multicomponent chemical dressing agents in suppressing the most common fungal pathogens and seed infections in vitro. This work was performed in 2020 in the Federal Research Center for Biological Plant Protection (Krasnodar) in the laboratory of the creation of microbiological plant protection products and a collection of microorganisms. Fungi of the Fusarium, Microdochium, Bipolaris, Alternaria, Penicillium, Rhizoctonia, Septoria, Pyrenophora genera were used as test objects. The fungicidal activity of chemical preparations against economically significant phytopathogens causing root rot was evaluated in laboratory conditions by the method of serial dilutions followed by sowing on a nutrient medium. In addition, the effectiveness of the preparations was investigated by the method of treated seeds phytoexamination according to GOST 12044–93. The preparations, which included triazoles and phenylpyrroles, had the strongest inhibitory effect (100 %) on pathogens of Rhizoctonia, helminthosporiosis and septoria. The preparation containing compounds of the group of triazoles and strobilurins suppressed the growth of Rhizoctonia solani only. The preparations’ inhibitory effect on a number of phytopathogenic fungi was manifested in growth retardation, absence of aerial mycelium development and mycelium pigmentation. Concerning the causative agents of Fusarium root rot, the two-component preparations efficacy ranged from 51 % to 74.4 %; three-component one – from 42.9 % to 84.7 % depending on the species of the genus Fusarium. Presowing seed treatment made it possible to inhibit the growth of fungi of the genera Fusarium, Mucor, Aspergillus; significantly inhibit the development of the fungus Alternaria (spread in the experimental variant – 1.7 %, in the control variant – 46.7 %). From the data obtained, it can be concluded that multicomponent preparations based on triazoles and phenylpyrroles are highly effective in suppressing a wide range of phytopathogens and can be recommended for presowing seed treatment.