Effect of preventive and curative fungicide treatment on Fusarium proliferatum infected maize — a field trial

Abstract

There are extensive data on effects of antifungal agents on the plant pathogens, especially on Fusar iums spp. species. However, investigations on the interaction of chemicals and the treated cultivars are rare. The aim of the study was to test two types of fungicide mixtures, azoxystrobin-propiconazole, and prothioconazole-tebuconazole, which are applied in wheat cultivars intensively, on six fodder maize hybrids that were infected with Fusarium proliferatum in the R1 growth stage in a field trial. The effect of the fungicide treatment was tested on the starch content and antifungal, antioxidant polyphenols of the kernels in the R3-R4 and R6 stage of the cultivars. The level of the fungal presence and the fumonisin concentration of the kernels were increased significantly under the artificial infection. The fumonisin concentration was variable at the R6 stage of the hybrid maize kernels. The treatment with prothioconazole and tebuconazole was found to be suitable when it was done before flowering, while the azoxystrobin-propiconazole treatments were equally successful before and after maize flowering considering the decreasing fumonisin concentration of the kernels. Both fungicide mixtures, when they were applied after maize flowering, affected the starch biosynthesis to the R3-R4 stage significantly. Meanwhile, azoxystrobin-propiconazole also significantly affected the antioxidant flavone/flavanol contents from the R3-R4 stage to the R6 stage.

Fungicide performance on Fusarium meridionale control, grain yield and grain damage in maize

“…Preventive application of trifloxystrobin + prothioconazole and azoxystrobin + cyproconazole + carbendazim (Figure 1a and 1b) showed low GER severity, corroborating the data found by Andriolli et al (1), who used the second fungicide mixture and rates. In their studies with Fusarium proliferatum infected maize, Pusztahelyi et al (20) concluded that the treatment with prothioconazole and tebuconazole was suitable when done before flowering, while azoxystrobin-propiconazole treatments were equally successful before and after maize flowering, considering the decreasing fumonisin concentration of kernels. Trifloxystrobin + prothioconazole (0.15 + 0.17 and 0.22 + 0.26 L ha -1 ), pyraclostrobin + metconazole (0.19 + 0.12 and 0.29 + 0.18 L ha -1 ) and carbendazim (1.0 L ha -1 ), applied at increasing rates, showed efficiency despite the preventive and/or curative spraying.…”