MOVEMENT OF BARLEY POWDERY MILDEW WITHIN FIELD PLOTS

Movement of barley powdery mildew (caused by Erysiphe graminis f. sp. hordei) within fields was investigated by sowing the barley cultivars Tyra and Jupiter side by side in two field plots, and trapping spores along transects within the plots. The trapped spores were rested for v irulence on the two cultivars. The epidemic on Tyra developed quickly, and a gradient in the proportion of spores with virulence on Tyra was detected in the Jupiter half-plots. In the Jupiter half-plots, the ep idemic was much less severe; and no mildew could be found in one plot. Movement of spores from one half of the plot to the other usually dec lined steeply in the first 4 m from the boundary, and was not detectab le beyond 12 m. There were exceptions where the gradient was much shal lower, and these were consistent with differences in wind direction.