Fungicide Seed Coating Increases Emergence of Bluebunch Wheatgrass (<i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i>) Under High-Fungal-Biomass Conditions
Pathogenesis from soil- and seed-borne fungi can limit the survival and growth of native seeds and seedlings. Fungicides can combat fungal pathogens, but in some studies, fungicide treatments were ineffective at improving seedling emergence over untreated seed. Such studies suggest that low fungal p...
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MDPI AG
2025-02-01
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| author | Amber J. Johnson Brad Geary April Hulet Matthew D. Madsen |
| author_facet | Amber J. Johnson Brad Geary April Hulet Matthew D. Madsen |
| author_sort | Amber J. Johnson |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Pathogenesis from soil- and seed-borne fungi can limit the survival and growth of native seeds and seedlings. Fungicides can combat fungal pathogens, but in some studies, fungicide treatments were ineffective at improving seedling emergence over untreated seed. Such studies suggest that low fungal presence due to dry conditions may be the cause of fungicide ineffectiveness in some years and sites. This study tested whether a fungicide treatment’s effectiveness is indeed related to the amount of fungi in the soil. We compared the emergence and biomass produced from <i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i> seed that was uncoated, coated with no active ingredient, and fungicide-coated, across five soil treatments promoting different levels of fungal biomass. For uncoated seed, both percent emergence and total biomass of seedlings were highest in autoclaved soil and declined when fungi were present, but the level of fungus did not impact emergence or biomass for fungicide-coated seed. When grown in autoclaved, untreated, or low-fungus soils, percent emergence and total biomass from fungicide-coated seeds were not significantly different from uncoated seeds. However, in medium- and high-fungus soils, the percent emergence and total biomass from fungicide-coated seeds were more than two times greater than uncoated seed (<i>p</i> < 0.05). These results indicate that fungicide treatments can be effective at increasing restoration success for <i>P. spicata</i>, but the effectiveness of the fungicide treatment depends on the microbial environment of the planting site. |
| format | Article |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-02-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-64b661c1bf704d46aaea8ec882746eb42025-08-20T02:06:12ZengMDPI AGPlants2223-77472025-02-0114567910.3390/plants14050679Fungicide Seed Coating Increases Emergence of Bluebunch Wheatgrass (<i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i>) Under High-Fungal-Biomass ConditionsAmber J. Johnson0Brad Geary1April Hulet2Matthew D. Madsen3Department of Plant & Wildlife Sciences, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84606, USADepartment of Plant & Wildlife Sciences, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84606, USADepartment of Plant & Wildlife Sciences, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84606, USADepartment of Plant & Wildlife Sciences, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84606, USAPathogenesis from soil- and seed-borne fungi can limit the survival and growth of native seeds and seedlings. Fungicides can combat fungal pathogens, but in some studies, fungicide treatments were ineffective at improving seedling emergence over untreated seed. Such studies suggest that low fungal presence due to dry conditions may be the cause of fungicide ineffectiveness in some years and sites. This study tested whether a fungicide treatment’s effectiveness is indeed related to the amount of fungi in the soil. We compared the emergence and biomass produced from <i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i> seed that was uncoated, coated with no active ingredient, and fungicide-coated, across five soil treatments promoting different levels of fungal biomass. For uncoated seed, both percent emergence and total biomass of seedlings were highest in autoclaved soil and declined when fungi were present, but the level of fungus did not impact emergence or biomass for fungicide-coated seed. When grown in autoclaved, untreated, or low-fungus soils, percent emergence and total biomass from fungicide-coated seeds were not significantly different from uncoated seeds. However, in medium- and high-fungus soils, the percent emergence and total biomass from fungicide-coated seeds were more than two times greater than uncoated seed (<i>p</i> < 0.05). These results indicate that fungicide treatments can be effective at increasing restoration success for <i>P. spicata</i>, but the effectiveness of the fungicide treatment depends on the microbial environment of the planting site.https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/5/679bluebunch wheatgrassrangeland restorationseed pathogenssoil pathogensseed enhancement technologyseed coating |
| spellingShingle | Amber J. Johnson Brad Geary April Hulet Matthew D. Madsen Fungicide Seed Coating Increases Emergence of Bluebunch Wheatgrass (<i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i>) Under High-Fungal-Biomass Conditions Plants bluebunch wheatgrass rangeland restoration seed pathogens soil pathogens seed enhancement technology seed coating |
| title | Fungicide Seed Coating Increases Emergence of Bluebunch Wheatgrass (<i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i>) Under High-Fungal-Biomass Conditions |
| title_full | Fungicide Seed Coating Increases Emergence of Bluebunch Wheatgrass (<i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i>) Under High-Fungal-Biomass Conditions |
| title_fullStr | Fungicide Seed Coating Increases Emergence of Bluebunch Wheatgrass (<i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i>) Under High-Fungal-Biomass Conditions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Fungicide Seed Coating Increases Emergence of Bluebunch Wheatgrass (<i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i>) Under High-Fungal-Biomass Conditions |
| title_short | Fungicide Seed Coating Increases Emergence of Bluebunch Wheatgrass (<i>Pseudoroegneria spicata</i>) Under High-Fungal-Biomass Conditions |
| title_sort | fungicide seed coating increases emergence of bluebunch wheatgrass i pseudoroegneria spicata i under high fungal biomass conditions |
| topic | bluebunch wheatgrass rangeland restoration seed pathogens soil pathogens seed enhancement technology seed coating |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2223-7747/14/5/679 |
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