Yellow rust was a topic of conversation at all open days across the month of June and indeed it has been a topic since April as farmers tried to get to grips with it in the fields. The disease isn’t usually a big issue in Ireland, but was rampant this year.

We reported on this throughout the season. The issue was raised in England early on in the season and it was reported that there was likely some sort of breakdown in resistance.

This was clearly an issue in Ireland as well. Yellow rust is often present in the North East, where disease spores are likely to have come over the Irish Sea in the wind.

Yellow rust was worse in these areas this year, but it also took hold in areas it would not normally further south.

The YR15 gene is present in a lot of the current winter wheat varieties. This gene has helped protect crops from rust in the past, but yellow rust now looks to have changed and adapted to overcome that gene. Reading through the winter wheat varieties on the previous page you’ll see that not all of these varieties have that YR15 gene.

John Dunne of Goldcrop explained that YR15 has been used since the 1992. Speaking at Goldcrop’s open day Aoife O’Driscoll, senior specialist of plant pathology with NIAB in the UK explained that yellow rust is a biotroph, it loves lush green leaves. Spores pool on the plant and it cycles every 5-10 days. Dues to its quick cycle it can really get out of hand in a short space of time.

In the UK, if its not caught early it could require a T1.5. T0s are applied where active rust is present in the UK at GS30. That early control of the disease is essential. Tebuconazole is used to know it down, but you need a mix of strobilurins to keep it at bay.

NIAB has been monitoring rust yellow rust and mildew for 50 years and Aoife noted that there has been one single population of yellow rust in the UK and Europe for 13-15 years. This population is called Warrior Minus and there have been only small variations in the population up to now.

Aoife noted the right time of fungicide application is more important for control than the product.

At the Drummonds open evening in Termonfeckin, Co Louth Brian Reilly, who is well used to dealing with rust, reiterated this point and said “it is very easily cured” with a tebuconazole product and pyraclostrobin, but it has to be applied at the right time.

Brian said rust will require monitoring and may require a preventative spray in some cases, but more resistant varieties are on the way.

Brian noted that the price of winter wheat today is extremely high. However, he said there are varieties which will bring down that cost coming in the next two years.

Brian commented: “Every variety going down the list has flaws. It’s up to us to put them in the right slots and to use a few varieties.” This he explained will spread risk and help with management.

Some varieties also seem to be impacted by rust at different stages. Seedtech’s Tim O’Donovan said Graham has adult plant resistance to rust and can stay at the bottom of the plant, but obviously still requires treatment in those early stages.

You can listen to all the reports and interviews from crop and variety open days over the past few weeks on the Irish Farmers Journal's Tillage Podcast at farmersjournal.ie/podcasts.