Combining penthiopyrad with azoxystrobin is an effective alternative to control seedling damping-off caused by Rhizoctonia solani on sugar beet

Abstract The soil-borne fungus Rhizoctonia solani causes damping-off on sugar beet seedlings. Growers rely on fungicides to protect sugar beet in fields affected by R. solani. Quinone outside inhibitor (QoI) fungicides, such as azoxystrobin, have been applied as in-furrow and foliar sprays to manage R. solani, but repeated use of QoI fungicides pose risks in fungicide resistance. Penthiopyrad is a novel fungicide with the succinate dehydrogenase inhibitor (SDHI) mode of action. The objectives of this study were to compare the efficacy of penthiopyrad used as a sole seed treatment versus azoxystrobin as an in-furrow or a post-planting application for controlling R. solani; to determine if a penthiopyrad seed treatment combined with azoxystrobin as a post-planting application can improve control of R. solani over sole penthiopyrad seed treatment, azoxystrobin in-furrow or post-planting spray application. Seedling survival rate and area under disease progress curve (AUDPC) for seedling loss rate were used to measure the efficacy of each treatment. A sole penthiopyrad seed treatment at 14 g a. i. kg−1 of seeds, and penthiopyrad seed treatments at 7 and 14 g a. i. kg−1 of seeds combined with one azoxystrobin in-furrow application 14 days after planting resulted in similar seedling survival rate and AUDPC as achieved with the standard azoxystrobin in-furrow application. However, post-planting foliar spray of azoxystrobin alone failed to control seedling damping-off. Our research suggests that penthiopyrad can be used as a seed treatment to provide early protection to vulnerable seedlings while azoxystrobin can be used as a post-planting application to protect the ensuing adult plants.