Effect of Foliar Fungicides on Corn with Simulated Hail Damage

Abstract

Quinone outside inhibitor (QoI) foliar fungicides can be effective at reducing foliar diseases in corn (Zea mays), and they have been shown to provide physiological benefits experimentally in other crops in the absence of disease. A new supplemental label for pyraclostrobin that was approved in January 2009 by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) states that corn plants applied with pyraclostrobin may have better tolerance to damage caused by hail. To determine the effects of QoI foliar fungicides on hail-damaged corn, field research trials were conducted near Champaign, IL in 2007 and 2008. Hail damage was simulated with a gasoline-powered string-mower at the V12 growth stage, which caused injury to leaves and defoliation. At VT, the foliar fungicides azoxystrobin and pyraclostrobin were applied to corn. Control treatments included a nontreated control and a nondamaged control. The simulated hail damage significantly (P ≤ 0.05) increased gray leaf spot severity (caused by Cercospora zeae-maydis) in 2007 but not in 2008. Simulated hail damage also significantly reduced yield compared with the nondamaged control in both 2007 and 2008. Foliar fungicides significantly reduced disease severity compared with the nontreated control in 2007 but not in 2008; however, foliar fungicides did not significantly improve yield in either the damaged or nondamaged plots compared with the nontreated controls. Results from our research trials indicated that foliar fungicides provided very little benefit to corn injured by simulated hail; thus, growers should consider factors other than hail damage when making fungicide application decisions for corn.