A Guide For The Study Of Black Stem Rust Of Small Grains And Its Relation To Common Barberry Bushes

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ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : pages
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Download or read book The Common Barberry: The Past and Present Situation in Minnesota and the Risk of Wheat Stem Rust Epidemics written by and published by . This book was released on 2010 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: One of the classic host-pathogen relationships in plant pathology is between the common barberry, Berberis vulgaris, and Puccinia graminis, the cause of stem rust, a destructive disease of small grains. As the alternate host of P. graminis, the barberry is the key in the sexual stage of the pathogen's life cycle. The combination of extensive small grains production and widespread cultivation of the common barberry in the north central United States resulted in major stem rust epidemics by the late 1800s and early 1900s. In 1918, the Barberry Eradication Program was initiated by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in cooperation with important small grain producing states. Before the termination of the program in the late 1970s, more than 500 million barberry bushes were destroyed. Since the end of the program, however, scientists have voiced concerns about the potential for barberry to reemerge as a source of inoculum and of new genetic forms. The objectives of this research were to examine the history of barberry eradication in Minnesota, to determine whether barberry has reemerged on sites in Minnesota and what effect this reemergence may have on future stem rust epidemics. An evaluation of archival records revealed that the origin of the Barberry Eradication Program was in reaction to successive stem rust epidemics and concerns over production shortages during World War I. The program that developed after 1918 was an unprecedented collaborative effort among federal-state agencies, land-grant colleges, and agricultural industry. Initial survey work was focused on the removal of barberry bushes in cities, towns, and rural planted sites; priorities shifted and procedures changed with the discovery of large numbers of escaped bushes, particularly in southeastern Minnesota. More than one million barberry bushes were destroyed in Minnesota between 1918-1990. A field survey of 72 of the approximately 1200 active sites in Minnesota was conducted. Active sites were define.