Wheat Diseases

All Wheat Diseases Content

Weeds growing in a recently harvested winter wheat field.

Winter Wheat Decisions

Winter wheat planting will soon be starting and a number of decisions will have to be made for a successful winter wheat crop, including: the time of planting, the choice of variety to be planted, disease and pest management decisions and crop insurance.

Wheat Streak Mosaic Virus Management Before Planting

Wheat streak mosaic virus is one of the important diseases in winter wheat and can lead to severe yield losses. Learn how it can be effectively mitigated by using proactive management in your fields.

Wheat leaf showing the green and yellow mosaic streaking associated with WSMV.

Wheat Streak Mosaic Virus Showing Up in Fields

Wheat streak mosaic virus is a viral disease, which has been found in samples recently sent into the SDSU Plant Diagnostic Clinic. Learn how to identify it before it takes a toll on wheat crops.

Are Fungicides Needed on Crops Damaged by Wind, Sand Blasting or Hail?

When extreme weather brings hail and sand blasting to fields, many growers wonder if a fungicide application is needed afterwards to protect wounded plants from bacterial diseases.

Map showing the risk of Fusarium head blight with green equaling no risk, yellow equaling moderate risk, and red equaling high risk. Much of the eastern half of South Dakota is red.

The Fusarium Head Blight Prediction Tool

The Fusarium head blight prediction tool, available through Penn State University and Mesonet at SDState, uses weather variables to predict the risk for Fusarium head blight in wheat.

A wheat field that is bright yellow due to infection of Wheat streak mosaic virus.

Pre-Plant Wheat Streak Mosaic Disease Management Strategies

Drought conditions tend to promote high wheat curl mite populations. Wheat streak mosaic virus and other viruses transmitted by wheat curl mites are best managed through cultural practices performed before planting.

Wheat Streak Mosaic of Wheat

Fact sheet about symptoms, disease cycle, risk factors and management of Wheat streak mosaic disease

Yellow wheat with grey colored wheat heads.

Sooty Mold: A Saprophytic Fungi Observed in Wheat

While out crop scouting, sooty mold was observed in some South Dakota wheat fields. Sooty mold is a saprophyte, which can be easily mistaken for a disease caused by plant pathogens.

From left: Wheat plants killed by common root rot. Wheat plants with bleached heads due to Take-all disease. Bleached wheat heads due to stem maggot feeding.

Differentiating Between Wheat Head Diseases and Disorders

Several diseases and disorders can develop in wheat heads. Learn the symptoms of several common disease and insect issues being observed in South Dakota wheat this growing season.

A wheat head showing the start of the flowering period. This growth stage is the best time to apply a fungicide to manage Fusarium head blight.

Use Fusarium Head Blight Risk Prediction Tools for Better Disease Management

Winter wheat has reached the flowering growth stage, which is a time of high risk for Fusarium head blight. By using disease prediction tools correctly, a producer can protect wheat from infection by applying a timely fungicide when the tools show moderate to high risk.