Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs: Guidelines for the Prevention and Control of Wheat Diseases and Pests during the 2019 Autumn-Winter Season

Release Date:

2019-09-26

Effective management of diseases and pests during the wheat sowing and seedling stages is crucial for reducing initial pest and disease populations, preventing their occurrence in the mid- and late‑season, and ensuring year‑round control. To strengthen chemical seed treatment and autumn–winter pest and disease management for winter wheat, the Department of Crop Production under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, in collaboration with the National Agricultural Technology Extension Service Center, convened experts from the National Wheat Industry System and related plant protection specialists. Drawing on the incidence of wheat diseases and pests during the 2019 spring and summer seasons, they have developed guidance on the prevention and control of major autumn–winter wheat diseases and pests across China’s various production regions.

1. Prevention and Control Strategy

In response to the predominant diseases and pests affecting wheat during the autumn and winter seasons in China, and based on their incidence and damage patterns, we adhere to the principles of prioritizing key threats, implementing region‑specific management, tailoring approaches to local conditions, and providing site‑specific guidance. We adopt an integrated control strategy that combines green pest management with unified, coordinated prevention and control, comprehensively applying agricultural, biological, physical, and chemical methods. Measures such as cultivating disease‑resistant varieties, promoting seed treatment with fungicides, scheduling late sowing at optimal times, and eradicating volunteer wheat seedlings as well as weeds along field edges and roadsides are employed to effectively manage wheat diseases, pests, and weeds during the autumn and winter, thereby laying a solid foundation for year‑round pest and disease management and ensuring the safety of wheat production nationwide.

2 Key Regions and Target Groups for Prevention and Control

Huanghuaihai Wheat Region: Primarily targets sheath blight, root rot, take-all, smut, cyst nematode disease, yellow mosaic virus, underground pests, and weeds, while also providing control of rust, powdery mildew, aphids, and brown planthoppers during the seedling stage.

Yangtze River Mid- and Lower-Reaches Wheat Region: Primarily targets scab, sheath blight, take-all, and smut diseases, while also controlling underground pests, aphids, brown planthoppers, and powdery mildew.

Southwest Wheat Region: Primarily targeting wheat stripe rust, while also controlling powdery mildew, wheat aphids, wheat spider mites, and underground pests.

Northwest Wheat Region: Targeting wheat stripe rust, powdery mildew, smut diseases, and underground pests as the primary control objectives, regions such as Xinjiang should also address diseases like snow mold.

3 Key Technologies

(1) Plant disease- and pest-resistant varieties. In areas where stripe rust is endemic: select varieties that exhibit strong resistance to new stripe rust races; in regions where the disease manifests during the adult plant stage, consider using slow‑rusting cultivars. In stripe rust overwintering zones: at different elevations, sow high‑quality wheat varieties carrying distinct resistance genes to reduce the initial inoculum of stripe rust. In Fusarium head blight–prone areas: choose varieties with moderate resistance to this disease, avoid indiscriminately introducing high‑yielding but susceptible cultivars, and thereby mitigate the risk of late‑season epidemics. In areas severely affected by cyst nematode: plant newly developed varieties with measurable resistance. In both established and emerging foci of wheat yellow mosaic virus: select varieties that are relatively resistant to soilborne viral diseases.

(2) Seed treatment with chemical agents. In regions where seedling-stage diseases are severe, consider using high‑efficacy suspension seed coatings containing tebuconazole, difenoconazole, fludioxonil, or a combination of difenoconazole and fludioxonil to treat wheat seeds. In areas with heavy seedling‑stage insect pests, apply imidacloprid suspension seed coating or phoxim for seed treatment or coating. In regions where multiple diseases and pests occur simultaneously, use combined fungicide–insecticide seed coatings or seed‑treatment formulations for coating or mixing. In the summer‑overwintering zones of stripe rust and adjacent wheat-growing areas, employ triazolone‑ or tebuconazole‑based seed coatings to control both stripe rust and powdery mildew during the seedling stage while also preventing loose smut later in the season. In areas where take‑all disease is prevalent, prioritize the use of difenoconazole suspension seed coating and silthiopham (Quan Shi Jing) suspension formulation for seed treatment or coating. For fields severely affected by soilborne diseases and underground pests, implement chemical soil treatments.

(3) Agricultural practices. In areas where Fusarium head blight, root rot, stem base rot, and other soil-borne diseases are prevalent, implement straw incorporation and meticulous land preparation; where possible, adopt deep tillage to bury corn residues in the soil, thereby reducing the initial pathogen population. In regions or fields with severe cyst nematode infestation, prioritize the application of soil compaction measures after sowing and during the autumn seedling stage to control disease incidence; in suitable areas, combine post-emergence winter irrigation with compaction of wheat seedlings. In summer‑overwintering zones for wheat stripe rust, eliminate volunteer wheat seedlings through manual removal and herbicide application. Adjust the sowing date according to soil moisture conditions by adopting timely late sowing to reduce early‑season infection by stripe rust, mitigate seedling‑stage diseases, and lower the overwintering pathogen inoculum.

(4) Autumn seedling disease management. Based on the incidence of stripe rust, powdery mildew, and sheath blight during the autumn seedling stage, implement spot‑treatment followed by blanket application when disease pressure is severe. In winter‑breeding areas for stripe rust, intensify disease monitoring and apply fungicides to fields showing early symptoms; triazole fungicides are recommended for spray applications. In regions where sheath blight occurs during the seedling stage, strengthen surveillance and initiate timely control measures. In areas prone to wheat yellow dwarf virus, in addition to seed treatment for prevention, pay close attention to controlling aphids during the seedling phase to reduce the risk of disease transmission; insecticides such as imidacloprid or pymetrozine can be used to manage aphid populations.

4 Safeguard Measures

(1) Strengthen organizational leadership. Actively seek the attention and support of leaders, scientifically formulate work plans, refine implementation measures, and assign clear responsibilities. By convening meetings and organizing relevant initiatives, promptly communicate the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs’ requirements for autumn‑winter crop production, and make specific arrangements for seed treatment with chemical agents and for pest and disease control during the autumn and winter seasons.

(2) Strengthen service and guidance. With tight timelines and heavy workloads for wheat autumn sowing seed treatment, agricultural and rural departments at all levels, along with plant protection agencies, should organize local efforts to ensure adequate supplies of protective agents, seed‑treatment equipment, and control machinery. During the critical autumn‑sowing period, deploy technical teams to the front lines of production, conduct on-site training, and provide hands-on technical guidance to ensure that chemical seed treatment and autumn seedling‑stage pest and disease management are effectively implemented. At the same time, reinforce oversight of the pesticide market, rigorously investigate illegal activities, and resolutely prevent incidents in which counterfeit or substandard pesticides harm farmers and undermine agricultural production.

(3) Strengthen monitoring and early warning. Plant protection agencies at all levels should conduct a comprehensive analysis of soil-borne and seed-borne pests and diseases, as well as pest and disease incidence during the seedling stage, in their respective regions; identify priority targets for autumn‑sowing seed treatment and control; and provide guidance to farmers on the scientific application of seed treatments. While maintaining systematic monitoring, they should also intensify large‑scale surveys to accurately and promptly assess the distribution and prevalence of pests and diseases, thereby providing evidence‑based guidance for prevention and control measures.

(4) Strengthen demonstration and leadership. Deeply advance the establishment of green pest and disease control demonstration zones for wheat, fully leverage the roles of specialized, unified pest management and green control demonstration bases, vigorously promote green control measures such as highly effective, low-toxicity pesticides, implement integrated management of diseases and pests during the seedling stage, and foster scientific approaches to disease and pest prevention and control.

(5) Strengthen publicity and guidance. Make full use of television, radio, newspapers, and other media to vigorously promote the critical role of seed treatment with chemical agents in autumn sowing. Publicize successful practices, effective approaches, and exemplary cases from across regions to foster a favorable public opinion environment for advancing this work. At the same time, enhance information reporting by promptly disseminating updates on autumn sowing progress and seed‑treatment‑based pest and disease control measures, thereby facilitating the smooth implementation of wheat pest and disease management during the autumn and winter seasons.

Source: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs

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