Management of wheat stem rut (Puccinia graminis f.Sp. Tritici) through variety and nitrogen fertilizer application rate in the west Shoa zone

Abstract Wheat stem rust (Puccinia graminis f.sp. tritici) is a common fungal disease that causes significant yield reductions and grain quality deterioration. Therefore, this study was designed to investigate the efficacy of integrating different management strategies against stem rust (Sr) of wheat in the West Shoa zone during the main growing season of 2022. A split-split plot field experiment was conducted using wheat varieties, the frequency of application of fungicides, and nitrogen fertilizer rates. The results of the field experiment revealed a significant interaction effect of wheat variety, nitrogen fertilizer rate, and frequency of application of fungicides on disease intensity and wheat grain yield. The Wane wheat variety was found to be more resistant to stem rust, followed by Kingbird. In general, the pressure of the disease increased with increasing nitrogen fertilizer rate from 100 to 200 kg/ha. On the other hand, increasing the frequency of spraying of fungicides from 0 to two resulted in a lower disease pressure in all varieties. However, the results were more pronounced on the susceptible wheat variety. Current findings confirmed the role that integrated disease management may play in controlling stem rust epidemics. However, results should be verified through additional trials across agroecologies and years.