The use of fungicide for controlling of wheat foliar diseases is a common practice among farmers. However, due to the environmental impact caused by widespread use, some alternative pathogen controls are needed. This work aimed to evaluate the effect of leaf mineral nutrition on the control of wheat foliar diseases, and its effect on the plant. The experiment was arranged in a randomized block design with four replications and four treatments: 1- control; 2- leaf fertilization at 30 days after emergence (DAE) and at 75 DAE; 3- fungicide at 30 and 75 DAE; and 4- leaf fertilization at 30 DAE and foliar fertilizing + fungicide at 75 DAE. Nine incidence evaluations were carried out for powdery mildew to calculate the area under the disease progress curve; three evaluations for rust severity and gluma spots; and two evaluations for yellow spot yield, mass of fresh and dry matter of aerial parts and root system were determined. There was reduction in the intensity of powdery mildew as a function of leaf fertilization, only in the first evaluation of incidence and in the second and fifth evaluations of severity. There was complementary effect of the nutrients with the fungicide for reducing diseases only for yellow spot, with a reduction in severity of approximately 11.16 %. Higher yield was recorded for the treatments with fungicide only and for fungicide + nutrients. Leaf fertilization promoted increase in root fresh mass and root dry mass; however, there was no increase in fresh mass of aerial part as a function of the leaf fertilization.
Triticum aestivum L.; resistence induction; powdery mildew; rust; yellow spot
