Influence of soil-water matric potential on the control of Pythium root infection of wheat with metalaxyl in two contrasting soils of South Australia

Abstract

Under prevailing climatic conditions, treatment of winter-sown wheat with metalaxyl (seed dressing, granule, or soil drench applications) significantly limited seed infection by Pythium species but did not give a significant yield response in separate field trials conducted on 2 contrasting soil types in South Australia. However, following irrigation of trial plots (which raised the soil-water matric potential from about -0.09 MPa to -0.02 MPa) during the first 3 weeks of wheat growth in 1989, metalaxyl granule treatment was effective in limiting seed and root infection by the 2 dominant Pythium species present, P. irregulare and P. echinulatum, and gave a significant increase in grain yield on both soil types. This effect of soil-water matric potential was confirmed in growth cabinet experiments in which metalaxyl was shown to be more effective in controlling infection of wheat by P. irregulare in both soil types when the soil-water matric potential was maintained at -0.02 MPa than at a soil-water matric potential of -0.1 MPa.