News & Events

Crop Corner – Fungicide in Wheat

March 01, 2016

With the coming of spring and the expected large crop of wheat it is a good time to review the timing of fungicide treatment in the crop.  There are three effective times to spray and they are referred to as T-1, T-2 and T-3.

T-1 Timing- Tillering to Early Stem Elongation

With early planting and excellent fall growth a T-1 fungicide is going to be very important.  The main diseases that started showing up last fall and will also be present first thing this spring will be Powdery Mildew and Septoria.  Disease is typically more severe when there is a lush canopy.  The advantage of a T-1 fungicide, like Stratego Pro, is its unique ability to stop any disease that is present and also provide protection for any new disease spores landing on the leaves.  The timing can be combined with a herbicide to save on application costs.

T-2 Timing- Early Flag Leaf

The flag leaf and head contribute to 70% of final grain yield, so it is important to keep the flag leaf green and photosynthesizing as long as possible.  A T-2 fungicide is important if you are scouting and seeing disease moving up through the canopy or if rust has been reported in the province.  Leaf and stem rust do not typically overwinter in Ontario, but if the spores blow in from the US they will land directly on the flag leaf and quickly turn green tissue to red/brown, dramatically affecting yield.  A flag leaf fungicide, like Folicur, is very strong on rust, Septoria and Powdery Mildew that may be moving up in the canopy.

T-3 Timing- Early Flowering  

The T-3 fungicide timing provides the biggest return on investment because it protects the head, stem and flag leaf while keeping all green tissue green.  A T-3 application of Prosaro protects against leaf diseases and Fusarium Head Blight.  With a T-3 fungicide application both yield and quality benefit.  Ontario wheat trials have also shown a synergistic yield bump with increased nitrogen rates and T-3 fungicide where 1+1=3.

If you would like information on rates and scouting services please feel free to give us a call! 

This Crop Corner has been written by John Welsh, Sales Agronomist at Clark Agri Service.  John can be reached by email jwelsh@clarkagriservice.com or by phone 905-984-9351