PROGRESSIVE STUDIES ON STRIPE AND LEAF RUSTS OF WHEAT AND THEIR CONTROL

Abstract

Wheat (Triticum astivum) is considered the important dynamic sector in world grain production. In Egypt, the average of cultivated wheat area during 2001-2002 was 2 million feddans yielding 6• million tons of grains. Under Egyptian conditions, wheat

is attackedwith several common rust diseases like stem, leaf and stripe caused by Puccinia gramis tritici, P. recondita and P. striiformis, respectively. Thus,many wheat varieties were canceled as a result for their susceptibility to infection with these rusts (Abd El-Hak and Kamel, 1972 and Abd El-Hak eta!., 1983).

The significance of each disease in particular depends upon the prevalence of the aggressive and/or virulent forms of the parasite and their affinity or compatibility with the genetic constitutions of the host in a givens environment. Therefore, the cultivated wheat varieties suffered form sudden epidemics during the five elapsed decades from the perspective of change in weather conditions in relation to the genetic make up of both host and parasite.

The first leaf rust epidemic in Egypt was recorded with wheat var. Giza 139 during 1945 and the second was recorded during 1968 when the stripe rust destroyed most of the wheat area grown to the var. Giza 144 in northern Governorates generally and particulary, in Manzala district (Abd El-Hak and Kamel, 1972).