Reduction of Rhizoctonia root rot of direct-drilled wheat by short-term chemical fallow

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Abstract
This study has demonstrated that volunteer pasture, comprising mainly barley grass and ryegrass, which grows over several weeks between autumn rains and seeding, promotes damage to roots of direct-drilled wheat caused by Rhizoctonia solani. A chemical fallow, in which the volunteer pasture was sprayed 3-6 weeks before seeding, greatly reduced the root damage (based on visual ratings) caused by R. solani on direct-drilled wheat in the field and in a controlled- environment experiment in which field conditions were simulated. In the field experiment, grain yields of direct-drilled wheat following pasture in plots treated with herbicides was 2.2 t/ha compared with 1.2 t/ha in untreated plots. The application of herbicides did not affect the yields of wheat sown following cultivation.