Temperature, Moisture, and Seed Treatment Effects on Rhizoctonia solani Root Rot of Soybean

The effects of temperature and soil moisture on infection and disease development by Rhizoctonia solani on soybean were studied individually. In addition, the anastomosis group of R. solani isolates recovered from soybean from 35 fields in 15 counties was determined. All of the 44 isolates recovered in this study were AG-2-2 IIIB. Five isolates of R. solani were able to infect and colonize soybean roots and hypocotyls at 20, 24, 28, and 32°C in growth chamber studies. The temperatures evaluated in this study were not limiting to the isolates tested. In greenhouse studies, nine R. solani isolates and a noninoculated control were evaluated at 25, 50, 75, and 100% soil moisture holding capacity (MHC). Root weights were greater and percent stand averages higher at 50 and 75% than at 25 or 100% MHC; however, as percentage of control, the main effect on percent moisture for percent stand, plant height, or root weight was not significant. There were significant differences among the isolates for the percent stand, root rot rating, and root fresh weight of soybean in each study. In both temperature and moisture studies, the R. solani isolates could be separated as predominantly causing (i) seed rot, as detected by greatly reduced plant stand; (ii) root rot generally having no effect on plant stand but a high root rot rating and low root weight; or (iii) hypocotyl lesions, having no effect on plant stand, a low root rot score, and a high number of red lesions on the hypocotyl. In the greenhouse seed treatment evaluations of five fungicides, there was no fungicide by isolate interaction using these pathogenic types of R. solani. None of the seed treatments evaluated in this study provided 100% control of the four isolates tested. Due to the wide range of environmental factors that permit R. solani infection and disease on soybeans, other control measures that last all season, such as host resistance, should be emphasized.