RustWatch: A European early-warning system for wheat rust diseases
The EU H2020 RustWatch programme ‘A European early-warning system for wheat rust diseases’ held its annual mid-term meeting on 5-7 October 2020 by videoconference. GEVES is particularly involved in this project, as task leader of EU-VCU trap nurseries in 81 trials from 17 countries in 2020. The EU- VCU trap nurseries have played an important role in providing information on races and genetic groups of yellow rust, leaf rust and stem rust.
The University of Aarhus, together with GEVES, has developed a wheat rust toolbox database to manage the EU VCU trials results. Maps of races & genetic groups & disease pressure of yellow rust, leaf rust and stem rust, produced from VCU trap nurseries and other locations are also available at the following website:
Yellow Rust Tools – maps and charts
For yellow rust, the genetic group Pst10 is the most prevalent in EU. It is associated to the race Warrior (-) where several variants, can be found, as Kalmar/Nemo, Benchmark and more recently Amboise, identified by INRAE.
The detection of black rust is expanding in the EU, with at least 9 countries concerned in the last 3 years, including a first detection in France in 2020.
