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Downy mildew of maize

• Characteristic symptom on maize is the development of long, rather broad, chlorotic stripes along
most of the entire length of the leaf.

• The yellowish white colour of the stripes persists for more than a month or at least for three weeks
before becoming darker and only in the very late stages browning of the tissues is noticed.

• Puckering of young leaves bearing the chlorotic areas is common.

• Downy growth of the fungus can be seen on both surfaces of the leaf which is more prominent in
young leaves than on older leaves.

• Plants exhibit a stunted and bushy appearance due to shortening of the internodes.

• Downy growth also occurs on bracts of green unopened male flowers in the tassel.

• Small to large leaves are noticed in the tassel. Proliferation of auxiliary buds on the stalk of tassel
and the cobs is common (Crazy top).

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• Sorghum DM - Peronosclerospora sorghi / P. philippinensis

• Crazy top DM – Sclerophthora macrospora
• Brown stripe DM – Sclerophthora rayssiae var zeae
• Sugarcane DM – Peronosclerospora sacchari.

• Downy growth on both surface of the leaves, consisting

of sporangiophores and sporangia.

• Sporangiophores are quite short and stout, branch profusely into series of
pointed sterigmata which bear a single Sporangium.

• Sporangia are thin walled, hyaline, elliptical or ovate oblong with rounded
apex.

• Oospore on maize leaves are typically round, thin walled.

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Disease cycle
• The primary source of infection is through oospores in soil and also
dormant mycelium present in the infected maize seeds.

• Oospores are reported to survive in nature for up to 10 years.

• Alternate hosts also plays an important role in survival of pathogen. Kans

grass, (Saccharum spontaneum), Sorghum bicolor, S. halepens.

• Secondary spread is through airborne conidia.

• At the onset of the growing season, at soil temperatures above 20°C,

oospores in the soil germinate in response to root exudates from susceptible
maize seedlings.

• The germ tube infects the underground sections of maize plants leading to
characteristic symptoms of systemic infection including extensive chlorosis
and stunted growth.

• Once the fungus has colonised host tissue, sporangiophores (conidiophores)

emerge from stomata and produce sporangia (conidia) which are disseminated by
wind and rain splash and initiate secondary infections.

• Sporangia are always produced in the night.

• They are fragile and can not be disseminated more than a few hundred meters and
do not remain viable for more than a few hours.

• Germination of sporangia is dependent on the availability of free water on the leaf

surface.

• Conidia are produced profusely during the growing season. As the crop approaches
senescence, oospores are produced in large numbers.

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Management
• Deep ploughing.
• Crop rotation with pulses.
• Rogue out infected plants.
• Treat the seeds with metalaxyl at 6g/kg.
• Spray the crop with Metalaxyl + Mancozeb @
1kg on 20th day after sowing.
• Grow resistant varieties and hybrids viz. CO1,
COH1and COH2.

Brown spot of maize

• Early symptoms are water soaked lesions which are light
green at first but reddish brown and finally brown.

• Initially the spots are oval in shape which later on coalesce

to form brown blotches.

• These spot and blotches are more concentrated at the basal

portion of the leaf blade.

• Such symptoms also occur on leaf sheath and stems.

• When the stem is infected the tissues are weakened and the
stem breaks at the infected point causing severe damage.

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• Pysoderma zea maydis

• Hyphae – coenocytic

• Sporangia – oval to circular, smooth and brown in

colour.

• On germination, the sporangia open through a lid,

liberating unicelate hyaline thin walled zoospores.

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Disease cycle
• This fungus produces survival structures (sporangia) that
overwinter in corn residue and soil.

• During the next season the sporangia spread as airborne

spores, releasing zoospores when sufficient moisture is
present.

• The Zoospore becomes attached to the young leaves and

germinate to produce infection hyphae which later enter the
host tissue to cause the characteristic spots.

• High temperature and abundant moisture during the early

growth period of the host favour the disease development.

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Management
• Field sanitation practices reduces the inoculum
potential.

• Promoting residue decomposition through tillage

or other methods and rotating away from corn
will reduce the amount of the fungus available to
infect future corn plantings

• Foliar fungicides that list Physoderma brown spot

as a target disease on their labels are available,
but efficacy data are currently limited.