Status of Eyespot and Root Diseases of Barley in West Shewa

Abstract

The status of barley eyespot and root rots was assessed along four routes of West Shewa, Ethiopia between 1995 and 1997 cropping seasons. Each season, root samples were collected at seedling, stem elongation and flowering stages. At each stage, about fifty to
one-hundred plants were up-rooted along the two diagonals o f a field from five farmer’s fields per route. The study showed a significant level of eyespot and root rot diseases in the region. The eyespot and root rot diseases occurred as solely or in combination with one another. Incidence o f these diseases varied among fields, growth stages, and routes and the diseases increased with the age of barley crop. However, the number of eyespot and root rot infected samples was less when barley was sown after fallow than it was cropped after barley and linseed. The overall incidence of root rot for West Shewa was 49.1%, while that o f eyespot was 14.4%. The pathogens involved were Pseudocercosporella herpotrichoides, Cochliobulus sativus, Fusarium avenacium and Pythium spp. The latter two pathogens are new records on barley in Ethiopia. Therefore, it can be concluded that eyespot and root rots are important barley diseases in West Shewa.