Comparing Disease Predictors and Fungicide Programs for Late Blight Management in Celery

Late blight, incited by the fungus Septoria apiicola, is the most important foliar disease of celery in Michigan and results in necrotic lesions on leaves and petioles that can reduce yield up to 80%. Most celery growers apply the fungicide chlorothalonil as frequently as every 7 days to protect the crop; however, some of these applications may not be needed when environmental conditions do not favor disease development. The purpose of this study was to evaluate disease predictors using a standard (chlorothalonil) and a reduced-risk (azoxystrobin alternated with chlorothalonil) fungicide program for managing late blight on 'Dutchess' celery in 2003 to 2005. Fungicides were initiated 1 week after transplanting and reapplied every 7 days or according to the Septoria, Cercospora, or TOM-CAST predictors. The TOM-CAST predictor was tested using 10, 15, and 20 disease severity values (DSV) as thresholds for fungicide application. In each year of this study, timing sprays according to the TOM-CAST 10-DSV predictor resulted in disease control comparable with the 7-day interval, but required up to five fewer sprays and reduced fungicide costs up to $215/ha. The Septoria, Cercospora, and TOM-CAST 15-DSV predictors often provided control similar to the 7-day interval, but these predictors were somewhat inconsistent compared with TOM-CAST 10-DSV. The TOM-CAST 20-DSV predictor required the fewest number of sprays but unacceptable levels of disease resulted. The standard and reduced-risk fungicide programs frequently provided similar control; however, azoxystrobin alternated with chlorothalonil was more effective than chlorothalonil alone when disease pressure was high.