During the initiation and execution of a rootstock breeding programme to overcome the financially crippling disease, Phytophthora root rot of avocado, various constraints have been identified for both the breeding as well as the screening aspect of the programme. A review of the literature revealed a complex host-pathogen interaction that should be taken into account in the recombination and screening of genetic material. With the detection of beneficial genotypes being the crux of a breeding programme, this dissertation was focused on the screening of rootstock material for tolerance to Phytophthora cinnamomi. Screening should be scientific but at the same time also be time and cost effective. Specific attention was given to (i) the correct medium for screening mass numbers of seedlings, (ii) fast and effective cloning of single selections, and (iii) evaluation of clonal material for tolerance to P. cinnamomi. Soil as a screening medium was compared with three inert hydroponic media as well as one aeroponic system. Only soil was found to be ineffective due to its properties. The other media tested, namely, sand, vermiculite, water and the aeroponic system were equal in performance. The medium to be used will depend on the preference of the breeder as each medium has its own pro's and con's. It was, however, found that the evaluation criterion to be applied depends on the medium that is used. With regard to cloning of single selections, a definite difference with regard to the cloning ability of the different selections was found. An inability to be etiolated was displayed by some of the selections and these could thus not be vegetatively propagated and were not further tested. One of the tolerance mechanisms in the standard cultivar Duke 7, is root regeneration. It was thus expected that this characteristic cloning would give an indication of the rootstock's ability to tolerate P. cinnamomi. This could not be confirmed, but most of the selections did, however, perform better than Duke 7. Comparison of feeder root percentage in non-inoculated and inoculated treatments was not sufficient for facilitating the final selection of candidate rootstocks from a large number of potential clonal selections. Four selections were made, based on the hypothesis that a larger root system will be a better forager and thus enhance the horticultural aspects of the rootstock-scion combination. Valuable information was obtained with regard to various mediums and criteria to be used during mass screening and final screening of clonal selections. This knowledge must be taken into account in the planning of future breeding projects. During this project a total of 38 984 seedlings were screened and four selections were made. For both the nursery and the producer, knowledge of the clonal ability of a potential new rootstock is important from a financial point of view. / Dissertation (MSc (Horticultural Science))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Plant Production and Soil Science / unrestricted

Please read the abstract in the section 00front of this document / Thesis (PhD (Microbiology))--University of Pretoria, 2005. / Microbiology and Plant Pathology / unrestricted

The initial phase in the development of a biological control strategy is screening of biological control agents. Secondary to this phase is the establishment of accurate, effective application techniques. However, successful control requires a thorough understanding of all factors affecting the relationship between host plant, pathogen and other microbes. The purpose of this study was to screen and identify potential bacterial antagonists against Alternaria, a fungal citrus pathogen, attachment of the antagonists to bees, and bee dissemination of the antagonist to citrus flowers. A total of 568 bacterial epiphytes were screened on agar plates for antagonism against Alternaria. Only eight of these isolates, which were identified as Bacillus subtilis, B licheniformis, B. melcerons, B. polymyxa, B. thermoglycodasius, B. sphaericus, B. amiloliquefaciens, and B. coagulans, showed inhibitory effects on the growth of Alternaria. The most effective isolates were B. subtilis and B. licheniformis. Further screening was done with B. subtilis and B. subtilis commercial powder (Avogreen). These bacteria were sprayed on citrus flowers for colonisation studies. Mean populations of B. subtilis and the commercial powder recovered from the flowers were 104 and 103 cfu/stamen respectively. The organisms colonised the styler end and ovary of the flowers when observed under scanning electron microscope (SEM). Avogreen was placed in an inoculum dispenser, which was attached to the entrance of the hive. Honeybees emerging from the beehive acquired 104 cfu/bee. The powder attached to the thorax and thoracic appendages, as revealed by SEM. One active beehive was placed in an enclosure with fifteen flowering citrus nursery trees in pots for dissemination trials. Mean populations of commercial B. subtilis recovered from the flowers visited by bees were 104 cfu/stamen. Electron microscope studies revealed that the antagonist was colonising the styler end and ovary of the flowers. Field dissemination studies were unsuccessful due to low yields. / Dissertation (Magister Institutiones Agrariae)--University of Pretoria, 2003. / Plant Production and Soil Science / unrestricted

Quando os fungicidas sistêmicos ou com ação de profundidade passaram a ser adotados como parte dos programas comerciais de manejo de doenças de plantas, duas coisas aconteceram: o controle obtido passou a ser maior, porque estes fungicidas possuem maior período de controle residual e porque têm algum poder curativo, e passou-se a observar e relatar efeitos secundários, fisiológicos destes produtos sobre as plantas tratadas. Com efeito, muitos artigos disponíveis hoje na literatura descrevem diferentes efeitos fisiológicos provenientes da aplicação de fungicidas em várias plantas cultivadas. A maior parte destes trabalhos foi conduzida sob condições de uso relativamente intenso dos fungicidas, tais como aplicações seqüenciais, ou uso em plantas em vaso em casas de vegetação. Poucos deles trazem informação clara sobre a intensidade das doenças ocorrentes, tampouco sobre o controle oferecido pelos produtos utilizados. Sob este aspecto, não é fácil estabelecer de forma confiável qual a real importância destes efeitos fisiológicos no manejo comercial das doenças das plantas cultivadas. Mas existe farto material promocional disponível proclamando os benefícios provenientes dos efeitos fisiológicos de alguns fungicidas. O objetivo dos trabalhos desta dissertação foi quantificar o máximo de efeitos secundários oriundos da aplicação a campo (em condição mais próxima possível do uso comercial) de diferentes fungicidas, sistêmicos e não sistêmicos, à cultura do feijoeiro, separando aqueles que podem ser explicados devido ao controle diferenciado das doenças daqueles que somente podem ser explicados pelo efeito fisiológico dos fungicidas. Os resultados mostraram que diferentes efeitos significativos (mudanças na taxa de fotossíntese, condutividade estomática, retenção foliar e produção) puderam ser detectados nas plantas provenientes das parcelas tratadas com fungicidas, mas todos eles podem ser bem explicados pelo controle diferenciado das doenças oferecido pelos produtos testados. Conclui-se que apesar de extensivamente testados e comprovados, os efeitos fisiológicos promovidos por alguns fungicidas não podem ser considerados fatores fundamentais para seleção dos produtos a serem utilizados para o manejo das doenças na cultura do feijoeiro, mas sim a sua capacidade intrínseca de controlar os patógenos que ameaçam esta cultura. / When systemic fungicides were incorporated to plant disease management strategies, two things started to happen: there was an increase in efficacy of diseases control, because these fungicides have longer lasting effect and some curative power, and some physiological effects caused by these fungicides started being related. Actually, many articles describe and measure physiologic effects caused by different fungicides in many plants. Most of these studies are carried out under very intensive conditions such as potted plants in greenhouses. Only few of them give clear information on disease severity in field trials, or disease control achieved by the fungicides. It is not easy to understand how important these physiologic effects are when selecting fungicides to be used in programs for disease management. But there is a lot of promotion material claiming that different fungicides promote physiologic effects that can benefit many crops, offering it as a factor to be taken into account when selecting products to be used in disease management programs. The objective of this work was to quantify as many changes as possible in the dry beans crop after the field use (as closest as possible to commercial conditions) of different fungicides, systemic and not systemic, separating those changes that could come from disease control from those that could only come from physiological effects. Results showed that under field conditions, some significant changes (photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, leaf retention, yield) were measured in the crop, but all of them could be well explained by the disease control given by the fungicides. Conclusion is that the capacity to induce physiologic effects on plants should not be considered as a critical factor to select a fungicide to be used in disease management programs by dry beans growers. For this purpose, the main driver should be the efficacy of the fungicide to control the most important diseases threatening that crop.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-12-08T16:44:48Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 PGPV14MA153.pdf: 1150046 bytes, checksum: e7bc4d1b84e9aae2e7b26a7688897688 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-11-21 / The Thermal Pest Control (TPC) is na implemente that has been used in vineyards throughout Brazil with the aim of replacing chemical treatments. It is based on the principle of stimulating the vine to increase production of phytoalexins by heat. The plant submitted to the TPC is physically stimulated, the heat makes the environment less favorable to the fungal growth, and act as a stressor in the plant mechanisms of self-protection, altering the qualitative parameters of the plant and the fruit. Currently, to the rationalization and otpmization of cultural practices, knowledge of phenological stages is essential for the vine cultivation. Pathogens are a major competitive advantage over those grown vines, which are hundreds of years without genetic changes due to vegetative propagation. This fact is a major cause of epidemics in the vineyards and the rapid emergence of pathogens resistant to fungicides. Being an emerging technology that aims at the gradual replacement of chemical treatments in the vineyards, the presente study aimed to evaluate in chapter one: the productivity and the physicochemical characteristics of Chardonnay grapes subjected to TPC. And in chapter two, the effect of TPC technology on the incidence of escoriose (Phomopsis vitícola), incidence and severity of anthracnose (Elsinoe ampelina) and downy mildew (Plasmopara vitícola).in both chapters were demonstrated the phenological variation under treatment with TPC in vineyard of Chardonnay at conditions of Serra Gaucha, in the municipality of Pinto Bandeira RS. The experimente was performed in cycles 2011/12, 2012/13 and 2013/14 in a comercial vineyard, geographical coordinates: 29 ° 10 S and 51° 31 . Treatments consisted of the use of TPC more contact fungicides; and conventional chemical control Vineyards Chardonnay undergo treatments with the TPC feature productivity 27% less than conventionally treated vineyards. The maturation process is early, there is a reduction in compaction of clusters and increase in leaf área and thickness of the plants. The TPC combined with contact fungides ia as eficient as the conventional chemical treatment when it comes to escoriose, anthracnose and downy mildew. The grape phenology is affected by the use of TPC. For the variety Chardonnay, plants were subjected to treatments with TPC in previous cycles, obtained later budding, a positive feature because of Chardonnay be na early variety, being susceptible to late frosts / A Thermal Pest Control (TPC) é um implemento que tem sido utilizado em vinhedos de todo o Brasil com o objetivo de substituir tratamentos químicos. Baseia-se no princípio de estimular a videira a aumentar a sua produção de fitoalexinas através de calor. A planta submetida ao TPC é estimulada fisicamente. O calor atua tornando o ambiente menos propício ao desenvolvimento de fungos e também, como agente estressante na planta, estimulando os mecanismos de autoproteção vegetal, podendo alterar os parâmetros qualitativos da planta e do fruto. Visando a racionalização e otimização de práticas culturais, o conhecimento dos estádios fenológicos é indispensável para o cultivo da videira. Os agentes patogênicos stão em grande vantagem competitiva em relação às videiras cultivadas, que passam centenas de anos sem mudanças genéticas, devido à propagação vegetativa. Este fato é a maior causa da ocorrência de epidemia nos vinhedos e do rápido aparecimento de patógenos resistentes a fungicidas. Por ser uma tecnologia incipiente, que visa à vinhedos, o presente estudo objetivou avaliar no capítulo um: a produtividade e as características físico-químicas de uvas Chardonnay submetidas à TPC. E no capítulo dois, o efeito da tecnologia TPC sobre a incidência de escoriose (Phomopsis vitícola), incidência e severidade de antracnose (Elsinoe ampelina) e míldio (Plasmopara vitícola). Em ambos os capítulos foi abordada a variação fenológica ocorrida sob tratamento com a TPC no vinhedo, nas condições edafoclimáticas da Serra Gaúcha, no município de Pinto Bandeira RS. O experimento foi executado nos ciclos 2011/12, 2012/13 e 2013/14 em vinhedo comercial, coordenadas geográficas: 29°10 S e 51°31 W. os tratamentos consistiram na utilização da TPC mais fungicidas de contato; e controle químico convencional. Vinhedos de Chardonnay submetidos a tratamentos com a TPC apresentaram produtividade 27% inferior a vinhedos tratados convencionalmente. A maturação das uvas adiantou, houve redução na compactação dos cachos e aumento na área e espessura foliar das plantas. A TPC aliada a tratamentos com fungicidas de contato foi tão eficiente quanto o tratamento químico convencional em se tratando de escoriose, antracnose e míldio. A fenologia da videira foi afetada pela utilização da TPC. Para a variedade Chardonnay, plantas que foram submetidas a tratamentos com TPC nos ciclos anteriores. Obtiveram brotação mais tardia, característica positiva pelo fato da Chardonnay ser uma variedade precoce, sendo suscetível a geadas tardias

Quando os fungicidas sistêmicos ou com ação de profundidade passaram a ser adotados como parte dos programas comerciais de manejo de doenças de plantas, duas coisas aconteceram: o controle obtido passou a ser maior, porque estes fungicidas possuem maior período de controle residual e porque têm algum poder curativo, e passou-se a observar e relatar efeitos secundários, fisiológicos destes produtos sobre as plantas tratadas. Com efeito, muitos artigos disponíveis hoje na literatura descrevem diferentes efeitos fisiológicos provenientes da aplicação de fungicidas em várias plantas cultivadas. A maior parte destes trabalhos foi conduzida sob condições de uso relativamente intenso dos fungicidas, tais como aplicações seqüenciais, ou uso em plantas em vaso em casas de vegetação. Poucos deles trazem informação clara sobre a intensidade das doenças ocorrentes, tampouco sobre o controle oferecido pelos produtos utilizados. Sob este aspecto, não é fácil estabelecer de forma confiável qual a real importância destes efeitos fisiológicos no manejo comercial das doenças das plantas cultivadas. Mas existe farto material promocional disponível proclamando os benefícios provenientes dos efeitos fisiológicos de alguns fungicidas. O objetivo dos trabalhos desta dissertação foi quantificar o máximo de efeitos secundários oriundos da aplicação a campo (em condição mais próxima possível do uso comercial) de diferentes fungicidas, sistêmicos e não sistêmicos, à cultura do feijoeiro, separando aqueles que podem ser explicados devido ao controle diferenciado das doenças daqueles que somente podem ser explicados pelo efeito fisiológico dos fungicidas. Os resultados mostraram que diferentes efeitos significativos (mudanças na taxa de fotossíntese, condutividade estomática, retenção foliar e produção) puderam ser detectados nas plantas provenientes das parcelas tratadas com fungicidas, mas todos eles podem ser bem explicados pelo controle diferenciado das doenças oferecido pelos produtos testados. Conclui-se que apesar de extensivamente testados e comprovados, os efeitos fisiológicos promovidos por alguns fungicidas não podem ser considerados fatores fundamentais para seleção dos produtos a serem utilizados para o manejo das doenças na cultura do feijoeiro, mas sim a sua capacidade intrínseca de controlar os patógenos que ameaçam esta cultura. / When systemic fungicides were incorporated to plant disease management strategies, two things started to happen: there was an increase in efficacy of diseases control, because these fungicides have longer lasting effect and some curative power, and some physiological effects caused by these fungicides started being related. Actually, many articles describe and measure physiologic effects caused by different fungicides in many plants. Most of these studies are carried out under very intensive conditions such as potted plants in greenhouses. Only few of them give clear information on disease severity in field trials, or disease control achieved by the fungicides. It is not easy to understand how important these physiologic effects are when selecting fungicides to be used in programs for disease management. But there is a lot of promotion material claiming that different fungicides promote physiologic effects that can benefit many crops, offering it as a factor to be taken into account when selecting products to be used in disease management programs. The objective of this work was to quantify as many changes as possible in the dry beans crop after the field use (as closest as possible to commercial conditions) of different fungicides, systemic and not systemic, separating those changes that could come from disease control from those that could only come from physiological effects. Results showed that under field conditions, some significant changes (photosynthesis, stomatal conductance, leaf retention, yield) were measured in the crop, but all of them could be well explained by the disease control given by the fungicides. Conclusion is that the capacity to induce physiologic effects on plants should not be considered as a critical factor to select a fungicide to be used in disease management programs by dry beans growers. For this purpose, the main driver should be the efficacy of the fungicide to control the most important diseases threatening that crop.

O objetivo desse trabalho foi quantificar e caracterizar danos pós-colheita em pêssegos comercializados na Companhia de Entrepostos e Armazéns Gerais de São Paulo - CEAGESP e testar produtos sanificantes no controle de podridão parda (Monilinia fructicola) e podridão mole (Rhizopus spp.). Para tanto, foram realizadas vinte avaliações semanais, entre as safras de 2003 e 2004, amostrando-se 1% do total de caixas de pêssegos em cinco permissionários que comercializam esta fruta. As amostragens foram estratificadas por variedade, calibre e produtor. Em todos os frutos de cada amostra foram quantificados os danos abióticos e as doenças pré e póscolheita. Os patógenos Monilinia fructicola e Rhizopus spp. foram cultivados em meio de cultura para realização dos experimentos de controle in vitro e in vivo utilizando cloreto de benzalcônio, dióxido de cloro, Ecolife40® e hipoclorito de cálcio, realizados de forma curativa e preventiva, além do gás ozônio aplicado somente curativamente. A incidência média de frutos danificados foi de 42% em 2003 e 32% em 2004, sendo subdivididos em injúrias mecânicas pré-colheita 18 e 12% em 2003 e 2004, respectivamente, e pós-colheita 12% em 2003 e 13% em 2004; doenças pré-colheita 3 e 1% em 2003 e 2004, respectivamente, e pós-colheita 4% em 2003 e 2% em 2004. O fungo do gênero Cladosporium sp. foi o patógeno que mais ocorreu nas safras avaliadas com 30% em 2003 e 28% em 2004. Injúria mecânica foi o tipo de dano póscolheita mais freqüente em pêssegos. Pêssegos da variedade Aurora foram os mais sensíveis às doenças pós-colheita. Nos testes in vitro cloreto de benzalcônio e Ecolife40®, ambos na concentração de 1000 ppm, inibiram totalmente o crescimento da M. fructicola. Nenhum dos produtos testados foi eficiente no controle de Rhizopus spp. in vitro. Nos testes in vivo, somente o cloreto de benzalcônio na concentração de 2 mL. L-1 e Ecolife40® a 3 mL. L-1, quando aplicados nos pêssegos de forma preventiva, reduziram significativamente a podridão parda em relação à testemunha, em frutos sem ferimento. O cloreto de benzalcônio inibiu a infecção de Monilinia fructicola em todas as concentrações utilizadas, quando aplicado de forma curativa em pêssegos sem ferimento. Hipoclorito de cálcio a 0,1, 0,2 e 0,3 g. L-1 e dióxido de cloro a 2 e 3 mL. L-1 também apresentaram inibição no crescimento de Monilinia fructicola nos testes curativos e inoculados sem ferimentos. Nenhum produto aplicado de forma curativa foi significativamente eficiente para impedir o desenvolvimento da podridão parda, quando a inoculação do fungo foi realizada sobre ferimentos no fruto. Nos experimentos, in vivo, realizados com Rhizopus spp. nenhum dos produtos e formas de tratamentos testados foram eficientes. O gás ozônio não foi eficiente, na concentração de 0,1 ppm, no controle de podridões parda e mole em pêssegos. / The purposes of this study were to quantify and characterize postharvest damages in peaches commercialized at the Companhia de Entrepostos e Armazéns Gerais de Sao Paulo ? CEAGESP, Brazil, as well as to evaluate the effectiveness of sanitizing products in controlling brown rot (Monilinia fructicola) and soft rot (Rhizopus spp.). Twenty weekly evaluations were carried out in 2003 and 2004 and 1% of all peach boxes from five concessionaires was sampled. Samples were stratified according to cultivar, caliber and grower. Every fruit in each sample was assessed as to abiotic damages and pre and postharvest diseases. The pathogens Monilinia fructicola and Rhizopus spp. were grown in culture medium to enable the conduction of the in vitro and in vivo experiments with benzalkonium chloride, chlorine dioxide, Ecolife40® and calcium hypochlorite used curatively and preventively, and ozone gas used only curatively. Average incidences of damaged fruits were 42% and 32% in 2003 and 2004, respectively, involving 18% and 12% pre harvest mechanical injuries, 12% and 13% postharvest injuries, 3% and 1% pre harvest diseases and 4% and 2% postharvest diseases, in 2003 and 2004, respectively. The fungus Cladosporium sp. was the most prevalent pathogen (30% in 2003 and 28% in 2004) in the periods evaluated. Postharvest mechanical injuries were the most common damages in peaches. Peaches cv. Aurora were the most susceptible to postharvest diseases. Benzalkonium chloride and Ecolife40®, both at 1000 ppm, completely inhibited the growth of M. fructicola in in vitro experiments. None of the products tested in this study was effective in the in vitro control of Rhizopus spp. Only the in vivo preventive treatment with benzalkonium chloride at 2 mL. L-1 and Ecolife40® at 3 mL. L-1 promoted significant reduction in brown rot in non-injured peaches when compared to control fruits. The curative use of benzalkonium chloride at all concentrations tested inhibited the infection by Monilinia fructicola in non-injured peaches. The curative application of calcium hypochlorite at 0,1; 0,2 and 0,3 g. L-1 and chlorine dioxide at 2,0 and 3,0 mL. L-1 also inhibited the growth of Monilinia fructicola in non-injured peaches. None of the products tested in curative treatments was significantly effective in preventing the development of brown rot when the fungus was inoculated on injured fruits. None of the products tested was effective in the in vivo control of Rhizopus spp. Ozone gas at 0,1 ppm was not effective in controlling brown rot and soft rot in peaches.

The objective of this study was to characterize an unknown agent associated with decline in black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis) in Oregon. A virus was found consistently associated with decline symptoms of black raspberries and was named Black raspberry decline associated virus (BRDaV). Double stranded RNA extraction from BRDaV-infected black raspberry revealed the presence of two bands of approximately 8.5 and 7 kilobase pairs, which were cloned and sequenced. The complete nucleotide sequences of RNA 1 and RNA 2 are 7581 nt and 6364 nt, respectively, excluding the 3' poly(A) tails. The genome structure was identical to that of Strawberry mottle virus (SMoV), with the putative polyproteins being less than 50% identical to that of SMoV and other related sequenced viruses. The final 189 amino acids of the RNA-dependent- RNA-polymerase (RdRp) reveal an unusual indel with homology to AlkB-like protein domains, suggesting a role in repair of alkylation damage. This is the first report of a virus outside the Flexiviridae and ampeloviruses of the Closteroviridae to contain these domains. An RT-PCR test was designed for the detection of BRDaV from Rubus tissue. BRDaV is vectored non-persistently by the large raspberry aphid Amphorophora agathonica, the green peach aphid Myzus persicae, and likely nonspecifically by other aphid species. Phylogenetic analysis of conserved motifs of the RdRp, helicase, and protease regions indicate that BRDaV belongs to the Sadwavirus genus. To assess the rate of spread BRDaV, four newly planted fields of black raspberries (Rubus occidentalis) in Oregon were studied for three years. In an effort to characterize the suspected complexity of synergistic interactions between BRDaV and other Rubus-infecting viruses, the prevalence of ten additional Rubus viruses was also monitored in the study fields. The timing of BRDaV infection as it relates to aphid populations and flights was also determined. Testing of nearby vegetation identified several symptomless Rubus hosts of BRDaV, as well as detection in multiple cultivars of black raspberry and several non-Rubus weeds. It was determined that BRDaV spreads rapidly with a low aphid threshold and consistently is associated with decline of black raspberries in Oregon. / Graduation date: 2006

Five potential resistance-inducing chemicals were applied to two sugarcane varieties (N12 and N27) in a pot trial with the aim of inducing resistance to nematodes in naturally-infested soil. BION® (acibenzolar-S-methyl), methyl jasmonate, cis-jasmone and 2,6-dichloroisonicotinic acid (INA) were applied as a foliar spray and suSCon® maxi (imidacloprid) applied to the soil. All chemicals were tested at two rates and plants were sprayed one week prior to being harvested at 7, 9 and 11 weeks of age. Meloidogyne and Pratylenchus infestation of sett and shoot roots was determined at each harvest. The activity of four pathogenesis-related proteins was examined at 7, 9 and 11 weeks using separate assays, these enzymes where chitinase, β-1,3-glucanase, peroxidase and polyphenol oxidase. Methyl jasmonate treatment produced significant increases in β-1,3-glucanase, chitinase and peroxidase activity. All other elicitor treatments showed little difference in enzyme activity from the Control. The effect of each treatment on plant growth was examined by recording the dried root and shoot biomass of each plant. No significant differences were seen (p<0.05; Holm-Sidak test). However, root and shoot dried biomass was highest in the N12 variety treated by suSCon® maxi. The infection of sugarcane with Ustilago scitaminea (sugarcane smut) is commonly identified visually by the presence of a smut whip. Identification of sugarcane smut infection can be determined prior to whip development by staining tissue sections with lactophenol cotton blue and examining plant tissues microscopically. This allows for a rapid determination of smut infection which can aid breeding programs. Smut infection is achieved in vitro by soaking sugarcane setts in smut spores collected from infected whips. Four methods of inoculation were examined. The method that most consistently caused infection involved allowing setts to germinate for 24 hours, before puncturing a bud with a toothpick, followed by submerging the sett in 1x10⁸ smut spores per mℓ. An elicitor of systemic acquired resistance called BION®, and an insecticide with resistance-inducing properties called Gaucho® (imidacloprid) were used as a sett soak treatments to induce resistance to sugarcane smut. The effect of each treatment at three concentrations on plant germination and growth was examined in the NCo376 variety. Smut spore germination on agar was examined in the presence of both treatments at three concentrations. Sugarcane setts were treated with a concentration that did not significantly reduce the germination of smut spores or sugarcane setts. Plants were infected with smut post treatment and allowed to grow for approximately one month until plants were between 8 and 10 cm in height. Smut infection was assessed by cutting longitudinal sections through the base of the shoot and staining each section with cotton blue lactophenol. Treatment with BION® and Gaucho® did not reduce smut infection. / M.Sc.Agric. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg 2013.

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Diseases are limiting factors for the expression of the high yield potential of rice cultivars in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Blast (Pyricularia oryzae) is considered the main disease, causing damage to yield and milling grain quality. Losses vary depending on the cultivar, management practices and climatic conditions. The integrated management practices for disease control has been used in order to minimize fungicide applications. In the season 2014/15 were set up two experiments in order to evaluate the influence of nitrogen, silicates and fungicides on the occurrence of rice blast (Chapter I) and the behavior and the quality of rice grains of cultivar Guri INTA CL (Chapter II ). The experiment was conducted in a lowland area at Department of Crop Sciences of the Federal University of Santa Maria (UFSM), with the experimental design of randomized blocks in a factorial (4x4x2) and four replications. In the experiment I, the treatments consisted of nitrogen rates (N) applied preflood pre and post flood (0, 60, 120 and 180 kg ha-1), and magnesium (Mg) and calcium (Ca) silicate applied to the soil (0, 3000, 6000 and 9000 kg ha-1) and whether or not fungicide the mixture tricyclazole, azoxystrobin and difenoconazole. The treatments experiment II were: nitrogen rates applied pre-flood pre and post flood (0, 60, 120 and 180 kg ha-1), application of potassium silicate (K) to the leaves (0; 2,9; 5,8 and 8,7 L ha-1) and whether or not fungicide. It was observed that rates above 60 kg ha-1 N provide plants to greater severity of rice blast, requiring the use of fungicides for effective disease control and keep grain yield. In the absence of conditions of chemical control, the occurrence of blast reduces the industrial quality of rice grains, increasing the percentage of chalky grains, white belly and chalk area. The silicate effects of both Ca and Mg and K have higher responses in the absence of fungicides cultivar of rice Guri INTA CL. / As doenças são fatores limitantes para a expressão do alto potencial produtivo das cultivares de arroz irrigado no estado do Rio Grande do Sul. A brusone (Pyricularia oryzae) é considerada sua principal doença e, causa danos à produtividade e qualidade dos grãos. As perdas variam em função da cultivar utilizada, das práticas de manejo adotadas na lavoura e das condições climáticas. O manejo integrado de práticas para o controle da doença vem sendo utilizado com o intuito de minimizar as aplicações de fungicidas. Na safra agrícola 2014/15 foram instalados dois experimentos com o objetivo de avaliar a influência do nitrogênio, silicatos e fungicidas na ocorrência de brusone (Capítulo I) e o comportamento quanto a qualidade industrial dos grãos de arroz irrigado da cultivar Guri INTA CL (Capítulo II). Os experimentos foram conduzidos a campo, na área de várzea do Departamento de Fitotecnia da Universidade Federal de Santa Maria (UFSM), com o delineamento experimental de blocos ao acaso, em esquema fatorial (4x4x2) com quatro repetições. No experimento I, os tratamentos foram constituídos de doses de nitrogênio (N) aplicados em cobertura (0, 60, 120 e 180 kg ha-1), doses de silicato de cálcio (Ca) e magnésio (Mg) aplicado via solo (0, 3000, 6000 e 9000 kg ha-1) e aplicação ou não de fungicidas da mistura triciclazol, azoxistrobina e difenoconazol. Os tratamentos do experimento II foram: doses de nitrogênio aplicados em cobertura (0, 60, 120 e 180 kg ha-1), aplicação de silicato de potássio (K) via foliar (0; 2,9; 5,8 e 8,7 L ha-1) e aplicação ou não de fungicidas. Observou-se que doses acima de 60 kg ha-1 de N predispõem as plantas à maior severidade de brusone, sendo necessário a utilização de fungicidas para o controle eficiente da doença e manutenção do rendimento de grãos. Em condições de ausência do controle químico, a ocorrência de brusone reduz a qualidade industrial de grãos de arroz, aumentando os percentuais de grãos gessados, barriga branca e área gessada. Os efeitos de silicato tanto de Ca e Mg como de K apresentam maiores respostas na ausência de fungicidas na cultivar de arroz irrigado Guri INTA CL.