Healthy Roots, High Yields Quiz Quiz

Explore the main wheat root diseases affecting crop health and yields, understand their symptoms, and learn about key management strategies in agriculture.

1. Identifying Common Wheat Root Diseases

   Which disease is most commonly responsible for the brown discoloration and rotting of wheat roots in damp, poorly drained soils?

   1. Take-all
   2. Powdery mildew
   3. Leaf rust
   4. Fusarium head blight

   Explanation: Take-all is a root disease that causes brown discoloration and rot, especially in wet soils. Fusarium head blight primarily affects wheat heads, not roots. Leaf rust and powdery mildew target above-ground plant parts like leaves, making them less associated with root damage.

2. Disease Transmission in Wheat Fields

   If you notice stunted growth and blackened roots in a monoculture wheat field, which factor most likely contributed to a buildup of disease organisms?

   1. Regular crop rotation
   2. Low humidity
   3. Well-drained sandy soil
   4. Continuous wheat cropping

   Explanation: Repeating wheat crops in the same area promotes buildup of root disease pathogens. Crop rotation helps manage diseases, well-drained soil can reduce pathogen pressure, and low humidity is not directly related to soil-borne disease buildup.

3. Diagnosis Based on Symptoms

   A farmer observes pinkish mold at the base of wheat plants, which eventually wilt and die. Which disease is most consistent with these symptoms?

   1. Smut
   2. Stripe rust
   3. Fusarium crown rot
   4. Septoria leaf blotch

   Explanation: Fusarium crown rot often presents pinkish fungal growth near plant bases combined with wilting. Stripe rust and septoria leaf blotch primarily affect leaves. Smut causes dark-colored grains, not pinkish mold or root issues.

4. Management Strategies

   What is one effective cultural practice for reducing the impact of soil-borne root diseases in wheat?

   1. Increasing irrigation frequency
   2. Using only late planting dates
   3. Applying foliar fungicides
   4. Implementing crop rotation

   Explanation: Crop rotation interrupts disease cycles by introducing non-host plants. Increased irrigation may worsen some root diseases, late planting affects disease timing but is less reliable, and foliar fungicides target leaf rather than root pathogens.

5. Weather and Disease Development

   Why are wet spring conditions especially favorable for many wheat root diseases such as Rhizoctonia root rot?

   1. Pathogens thrive in moist soils
   2. Wind disperses root pathogens
   3. Dry soil prevents pathogen growth
   4. Excess sunlight increases disease

   Explanation: Many root pathogens need moist environments to infect roots effectively. Excess sunlight and wind are not significant factors for root disease, while dry soil actually limits pathogen activity rather than encouraging it.