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The 2005/2006 fall and winter have been unusually warm in Nebraska. Consequently, we have seen winter wheat diseases that would normally occur in May. In November we found leaf rust on Millennium and Jagalene at the South Central Agricultural Laboratory (SCAL) near Clay Center. The December cold spell killed most of the rust; however, temperatures rose again and on January 24 we found both varieties in the same plots at SCAL heavily infected by powdery mildew. By March 6 heavy infection by powdery mildew was still present in the plots. We also found powdery mildew in a wheat grower’s field in Clay Center.
The powdery mildew is not apparent on the upper leaves. When checking for it in your field, lift up the upper leaves to expose the lower leaves. If powdery mildew is present, you will see cottony white patches on the upper surface of the lower leaves. The patches may appear brown due to dust or if leaf rust is also present on the same leaf, but for the most part the color will range from white to light gray or buff. Heavily infected leaves may appear yellow.
In the Millenium and Jagalene plots at SCAL as well as in the grower’s field in Clay Center, there were very few pustules of leaf rust as of March 6. Due to the unusually warm winter weather we have had and given that we are finding disease in wheat fields in early March, routine monitoring of wheat for powdery mildew, rusts, and other leaf diseases is advised.
Here is a summary of information about rust and powdery mildew on wheat reported to the Cereal Rust Survey in St. Paul, Minn., since last fall:
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