The visual estimate of the disease severity in plants does not always correlate with its effect on the host's photosynthetic activity. The aim of this study was evaluate the interference of the fungi Corynespora cassiicola and Erysiphe diffusa, causal agents of target spot and powdery mildew on soybeans, in the photosynthetic efficiency of infected leaves. Photosynthesis was related to the diseased leaf area by the equation Px/Po = (1-x)β. The estimated parameters β (± standard error) were 2.78 (± 0.28) (p<0.05) for the leaves infected with C. cassiicola and 0.72 (± 0.09) (p<0.05) and 0.77 (± 0.15) (p=0.15) for those infected with E. diffusa in the first and the second replicates. The value obtained for C. cassiicola (β>1) indicates that there was a reduction in the photosynthetic efficiency in the injured tissue and in part of the remaining green tissue, while the values obtained for E. diffusa (β≤1) indicate that the visual estimate of the disease severity is a good indicator of the effect of the fungus on the photosynthetic rate.
target spot; powdery mildew; virtual lesion; photosynthetic efficiency
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