Farms.com Home   News

First observations of stripe rust in commercial fields in Alberta

Dr. Mike Harding, Alberta Agriculture and Irrigation, Brooks, AB got a call last night from Dani Kerr, an Agronomy Supervisor at Nutrien,  saying that three of her staff had found stripe rust between Calgary and Drumheller.

Stripe rust was reported by Dani Kerr (Nutrien Innovation Manager) as found by three Nutrien Agronomists – Micayla Code (Rosedale), Emma Nesbitt (Balzac) and Grace Gregory (Strathmore). Some fields had only a few stripes (see photograph #1), while others had significant patches of rust (see photographs #2 and #3). 

For susceptible varieties, a fungicide application is warranted when approximately one plant per square meter is rusted. Scouting for early detection is critical as once 5% of the flag leaf area becomes symptomatic in susceptible varieties it is very challenging to manage with a fungicide. A fungicide application may not be necessary for resistant varieties. Once any variety is past anthesis, a fungicide application is not likely to provide economic benefit.

For more information go to:  https://open.alberta.ca/dataset/d02dd5ef-c2cf-4e7c-b020-16344057ed85/resource/58fb90bb-fafb-46e8-af3c-272bf5ce0dcc/download/agi-stripe-rust-101-2023.pdf

Or see: https://www.albertagrains.com/the-growing-point/articles-library/identifying-and-managing-stripe-rust

Growers in southern Alberta, as well as the Drumheller to Calgary region are encouraged to scout fields for symptoms of stripe rust and fungicide need. Pay particular attention to fields planted with susceptible to moderately susceptible varieties. Information on variety disease reactions can be found in the Provincial variety guides:

Click here to see more...

Trending Video

How American Farmers Produce 200 Million Tons of Crops – Large Scale High Tech Farming

Video: How American Farmers Produce 200 Million Tons of Crops – Large Scale High Tech Farming

How American Farmers Produce 200 Million Tons of Crops Every Year – Large Scale High-Tech Farming – Let's Dive In!

Join us as we take an in-depth journey into the advanced systems behind America’s large-scale agricultural production. This documentary explores how modern U.S. farms produce hundreds of millions of tons of crops every year—revealing the entire process, from precision planting and smart irrigation to automated harvesting and high-efficiency logistics that move food from fields to markets.