Prevalence, identity and seasonal variation of leaf diseases and selected agronomic traits of spring wheat genotypes under foliar microfertilizer and fungicides

A study was conducted at the Federal Research Center, Nemchinovka, Moscow, Russia, from 2022–2024, to assess the performance of spring wheat genotypes for diseases, growth, yield and quality traits under foliar microfertilizer and fungicides. The trial was laid out in a split-block design with three replications. Disease identification was done through visual, microscopic, and DNA sequencing. Two genotypes, namely Belyana and Radmira were used. Results revealed that climatic variations influenced disease prevalence. Belyana exhibited moderate resistance to septoria leaf blotch and powdery mildew, while Radmira had higher susceptibility to the diseases. Fungicide applications significantly reduced disease incidence and severity by 2 to 5 times compared to the control, with Colosal Pro, CME being most effective for Belyana and Alto Super, KE for Radmira. Treatment Colosal Pro, CME plus Ultramag SuperSera-900 demonstrated the highest biological efficiency. Plots with fungicide + microfertilizer exhibited increased yields by 23.98% for Belyana and 21.43% for Radmira compared to the untreated controls. Belyana exhibited higher disease tolerance, while Radmira consistently outperformed Belyana for productive stems, grain weight, and yield across years and treatments. The fungicides + sulfur-based microfertilizer treatment was more effective in reducing disease severity and enhancing yield, particularly under unfavorable climatic conditions. The findings suggest the use of integrated disease management strategy for mitigation of fungal disease impacts on spring wheat. These findings provide valuable insights for optimizing disease control strategies and improving spring wheat production and productivity in the Moscow Region. Choice of fungicide, crop genotype, and growth stage are critical to maximize efficacious use of the cultivation technology. © 2025 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.