The role of Poa annua in the epidemiology of barley yellow dwarf virus in autumn‐sown cereals

Studies of cereal aphids and barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV) from 1989 to 1992 revealed that Poa annua is an abundant weed of commercial winter barley crops during the summer months. P. annua was frequently infected with BYDV, and there were usually similarities with the BYDV infection of the surrounding barley crop. These P. annua weeds were often infested by cereal aphids both in July (pre‐harvest) and in September (in cereal stubble fields). Poa ‐infested cereal stubbles may be major local sources of viruliferous aphids, increasing the risk of BYDV in nearby winter cereals. P. annua plays an important role in the epidemiology of S. avenae ‐transmitted BYDV.