Epidemiology of sugarcane smut under subtropical conditions in Louisiana
1995
Hoy, J.W. | Grisham, M.P. (Louisiana State University Agricultural Center (USA). Louisiana Agricultural Experiment Station)
Interactions between cultivar characteristics and environmental conditions limit the spread and increase of smut in Louisiana. Growth of fall-planted and harvested sugarcane and disease development are interrupted then synchronized by winter. Sorus production does not begin until May, increases sharply during June, and continues at a lower rate through October. Aerial teliospore concentrations increase with sorus production and are affected by rainfall and distance from a spore source. Numbers of teliospores deposited on the soil within the crop are highest below and adjacent to sori then decrease rapidly with increasing distance. Most disease spread occurs within 15 m of an inoculum source. Winter severity and growing season rainfall affect disease gradients and rates of disease increase. Survival rates are lower for smut-infected than smut-free plants, and rates of smut recurrence in previously infected plants are low following severe winters. Teliospores are not long-lived in soil when moisture is present, and viable spores were not detected after 6-9 weeks. As a result, soilborne inoculum is not present when sugarcane is tillering in the spring.
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