Annual plants such as corn, change physiology within a few months of the growing season. Corn has been bred to rapidly move maximum carbohydrates to the developing kernels. This has a profound affect on leaf disease resistance.
A few weeks after pollination, dynamics affecting resistance to leaf pathogens changes. Cytokinins are increasingly concentrated in the developing grain embryos, causing more translocation of sugars from leaf tissue to the ear, reducing availability for cellular metabolism in the leaf tissue. Leaves lower in the canopy, in the shadow of upper leaves have reduced photosynthetic rates due to receiving less than 5% of the light intensity as those exposed to full sunlight. Not having sufficient energy to maintain its cells, senescence of these leaves begins. Among those cell functions is the production of anti-pathogen biochemical that limit leaf pathogens. Disease pressure increases in lower leaves with the higher humidity and longer dew periods that favor leaf pathogens. Cool, cloudy and wet weather in those 50 days of grain fill after pollination further favors the fungal leaf pathogens. This increased disease pressure on as leaf tissues occurs at the time in which they are losing the ability to react to invading organisms. Lowest leaves senesce first as the lower photosynthetic rate and increased disease kills tissue. Even weak pathogens, such as Fusariumspecies, invade the vascular tissue of such leaves causing the leaf to wilt, while the upper canopy leaves remain green and fully functional. The senescence pattern progresses up the plant as it gets closer to meeting the active translocation period of 50 days after pollination. If there was exposure to pathogens such as Exserohilum turcicum, the cause of northern corn leaf blight, earlier in the season, the disease appears to move up the plant. This can cause difficulty in comparing resistance levels among hybrids varying in maturity such as in research plots. Those with earlier pollination dates may appear to be more susceptible, especially if the environment favored the disease, simply because the leaf senescence was more advanced than the later hybrids. This can be misleading not only in determining differences in innate resistance levels but also in predicting potential grain yield or increased stalk damage from the disease. Comments are closed.
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About Corn JournalThe purpose of this blog is to share perspectives of the biology of corn, its seed and diseases in a mix of technical and not so technical terms with all who are interested in this major crop. With more technical references to any of the topics easily available on the web with a search of key words, the blog will rarely cite references but will attempt to be accurate. Comments are welcome but will be screened before publishing. Comments and questions directed to the author by emails are encouraged.
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