Diseases

Ergot

Claviceps purpurea

Ergot is a fungal disease of cereals characterized by the formation of toxic sclerotia instead of grains. The disease poses a critical risk to crop quality due to the content of alkaloids dangerous to health.

Mentioned in descriptions 365 varieties reference book.

The disease manifests during the flowering period of cereals with the appearance of 'honeydew'—sticky droplets on the ears containing fungal conidia. During maturation, hard black-violet structures called sclerotia or ergot bodies form in place of grains, which may significantly exceed the size of a normal kernel.

Pathogen development depends on cool, wet weather, especially during the crop's flowering stage, as high relative humidity facilitates infection. Plants with a prolonged flowering period and open-flowering types, through which spores penetrate the ovary, are most susceptible.

There are no genetically resistant varieties, so resistance is based on morphological traits such as cleistogamy (closed flowering) and the uniformity of ear flowering. Resistance assessment in breeding includes recording the infestation of ears, analyzing the reduction in productivity, and chromatographic determination of the accumulation level of toxic ergoalkaloids.

Losses from ergot are divided into quantitative, expressed as a 5–25% reduction in thousand kernel weight and grain count, and qualitative, associated with alkaloid accumulation. Exceeding the permissible limits for sclerotia content in grain makes the produce unsuitable for food or feed purposes.

Sources10

Breakdown by crop

Ergot of rye 97 Ergot of Triticale 6 Ergot of common wheat 4

Found in these crops

Rye 96 Triticale 6 Bread wheat 4 Canary grass 1 Italian ryegrass 1 Perennial ryegrass 1 Secale cereale x secale montanum 1 Cocksfoot 1 Italian ryegrass 1 Sorghum 1 Barley 1

Varieties that feature this in their description

Selection based on the description text, not official resistance ratings: such data is not available in registers. Mention indicates that the trait is discussed in the variety's sources; see the variety's profile for details on what is specifically stated.

Bojko

Active

Secale cereale L. · Rye

HODOWLA ROSLIN SMOLICE SP.ZOO

6 records

KWS Chello

Withdrawn

Secale cereale L. · Rye

KWS Lochow

DE DK EE PL

6 records

LSR 103

Active

Secale cereale L. · Rye

WILDE PEER

3 records

Poseidon

Active

Secale cereale L. · Rye

DK EE LT PL

7 records

Durinos

Active

Secale cereale L. · Rye

DE DK

4 records

KWS Empator

Active

KWS Bekator

Application submitted

Secale cereale L. · Rye

KWS Lochow

EE PL

2 records

Nakielska

Terminated

Dactylis glomerata L. · Cocksfoot

Stacja Hodowli Roslin Smilow

2 records

Ks310

Active

Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench · Sorghum

David Thomas

2 records

GARMONIYA

Active

Triticum aestivum L. · Bread wheat

RUP «NAUCHNO - PRAKTICHESKIJ CZENTR NAN BELARUSI PO ZEMLEDELIYU» UO «GRODNENSKIJ GOSUDARSTVENNYJ AGRARNYJ UNIVERSITET»

2 records

KWS Esthor

Withdrawn

Secale cereale L. · Rye

DE DK EE

3 records

Kisvárdai 41

Active

Phalaris canariensis L. · Canary grass

3 records

Mecklenburger Marienroggen

Active

Secale cereale L. · Rye

2 records

1 2 3 4 5 Next

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Text source

This summary is compiled from the publications listed in the sources and verified by an editor. It contains no legally significant information; it provides agronomic context for registry data rather than the registry data itself.