Is there a disease downside to stripper fronts? Harvest height implications for Fusarium crown rot management

Abstract

Take home messages
• Taller standing stubble allowed vertical progression of the Fusarium crown rot fungus within the stubble after harvest, whilst short stubble prevented further growth (i.e. vertical growth was limited to the height of the cut stubble).
• Stripper fronts, which leave higher standing stubble, may increase stubble-borne disease inoculum after harvest of an infected crop, especially if wet fallow conditions are experienced.
• In high-risk situations, such as an infected crop with high biomass, cutting the crop shorter at harvest will limit further inoculum development within the stubble after harvest (beyond the levels already present at harvest).
• Cutting infected cereal stubble shorter prior to rotation with shorter-stature crops such as chickpea or lentils also prevents the dispersal of infected stubble when harvesting these shorter break crops.