Powdery mildew of cucurbits, which include cantaloupe, honeydew, watermelon, cucumber and squash, occurs every year in Arizona. Moderate temperatures and relative humidity, succulent plant growth and reduced light intensity brought about by a dense plant canopy are factors that promote development of powdery mildew, which is caused by the pathogenic fungus Sphaerotheca fuliginea. Potential new fungicides were evaluated and compared to existing chemicals for control of powdery mildew of cantaloupe in a field trial conducted during the spring of 1998 at the Yuma Agricultural Center. A high level of disease had developed by crop maturity (June 23). On the upper leaf surface where spray coverage was good and disease severity on nontreated leaves was moderate (24% of upper leaf surface infected), all treatments significantly reduced the severity of powdery mildew. These treatments included Sovran, Flint, Procure, Topsin M, Quadris, Benlate, quinoxyfen, Rally, Trilogy, Actigard, Bravo, JMS stylet oil, Kaligreen and Bayleton. In contrast, on the lower leaf surface where spray coverage was not as good and disease severity on nontreated leaves was very high (94% of lower leaf surface infected), the best disease control was achieved with chemistries that have systemic properties. Treatments that held the infected lower leaf surface to 20% or less included Sovran, Flint, Procure, Topsin + Microthiol, and Quadris. The potential availability of new chemistries for management of powdery mildew of cantaloupe and other cucurbits could help improve overall control of powdery mildew as well as the implementation of fungicide resistance management strategies, which strive to minimize the risk of resistance development by the pathogen to these compounds.

Erysiphe cichoracearum is the fungus that causes powdery mildew of lettuce, a disease favored by warm and dry weather conditions. Several potential new fungicides were evaluated for control of this disease in 1999. Untreated lettuce plants were heavily infected with powdery mildew, whereas the disease was very light to virtually nonexistent in plots treated with Sovran, BAS 500, Rally and DPX-MU752. Higher levels of powdery mildew, still significantly less than that observed on untreated plants, were recorded in plots treated with the standard materials Microthiol Special and Trilogy in addition to several other compounds. The possible availability of one or more of these chemistries under development could help in efforts to control powdery mildew of lettuce and to establish and maintain a fungicide resistance management program for plant disease control products of importance for this crop.

Downy mildew of broccoli, cauliflower and cabbage is caused by the fungus Peronospora parasitica. Cool moist environmental conditions favor the development of downy mildew on these crops. Several potential new fungicides were evaluated for control of this disease on broccoli in 1999. The final severity of downy mildew in this trial was moderately high. Significant reduction in disease severity compared to nontreated plants was achieved by application of standard compounds such as Aliette, Ridomil Gold+maneb, maneb and Trilogy as well as nonregistered chemistries including Acrobat, Actigard, Curzate, Flint, Quadris, Serenade, Sovran, BAS 500, DPX-KP481 and RH-7281. The future registration and subsequent availability of one or more of these new chemistries for broccoli and related crops could enhance the overall level of disease control as well as help minimize the risk of development of resistance to fungicides used to manage downy mildew.

In Arizona, Sclerotinia leaf drop of lettuce is caused by two different species of fungi, Sclerotinia minor and S. sclerotiorum. Relatively cool and moist environmental conditions favor this disease. Some new fungicides in development were evaluated for control of leaf drop on lettuce during the winter vegetable growing season of 1998-99. Sclerotia of each pathogen were applied to plots after thinning and just before the first of two applications of test compounds. The final severity of leaf drop in these trials was moderately high. Significant reduction in the final count of dead lettuce plants compared to nontreated plots was usually achieved by application of the standard compounds Ronilan and Rovral as well as an appropriate rate of the experimental compounds Elevate, Medallion or Serenade. Medallion and Elevate provided equivalent disease control to that of the current standard materials with 0.178 and 0.5 lb active ingredient (a.i.) per acre, respectively, compared to the current 1.0 lb a.i. per acre required with the standard compounds. Continued demonstration of efficacy by Serenade may provide the opportunity to utilize a biological control product to reduce the incidence of Sclerotinia leaf drop of lettuce.