Dr. Robyn Roberts
Field Crops Pathologist and CSU Assistant Professor Robyn.Roberts@colostate.edu*
970-491-8239; @RobynRobertsPhD (Twitter)
*Email is the best way to reach me
DISEASE OBSERVATIONS
There is one report of virus-like symptoms in Sedgwick County. A neighboring plot had lots of volunteer wheat that likely contributed, since volunteer wheat can harbor the mite that spreads several viruses (wheat curl mite), as well as the virus itself. These samples have not yet been tested, so we do not know if symptoms are indeed caused by a virus, and if so which one(s). There have been no other reports of diseases at this time (including no other viruses, tan spot, or stripe rust).
Wheat fields are pretty spotty due to lack of water. Dr. Esten Mason Tweeted a photo of the status of several wheat plots last week (Figure 1). Stands in Kiowa and Kit Carson counties are in overall good condition, but Prowers county plots are showing drought stress. Stands in Yuma county are in poor condition and may be abandoned.