Efficacy of Seed Treatment and Foliar Application of New-Generation Fungicides for the Management of Anthracnose Caused by Colletotrichum Truncatum in Soybean

Abstract

Anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum truncatum (Schw.) Andrus and Moore is one of the most destructive diseases of soybean in India, resulting in considerable yield losses. The present investigation was conducted during Kharif 2023 at JNKVV, Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh), to evaluate the field efficacy of four fungicides (eight treatments) applied as seed treatment (ST), foliar spray (FS), and their combinations for the management of soybean anthracnose. All fungicidal treatments significantly reduced disease severity, disease incidence, pod infection and Area Under Disease Progress Curve (AUDPC), while improving plant health and grain yield over the untreated control. Among the treatments, T8 [ST Penflufen 13.28% w/w + Trifloxystrobin 13.28% w/w @ 1.25 ml kg⁻¹ seed + FS Tebuconazole 10% + Sulphur 65% WG @ 2 g l⁻¹ water] recorded the lowest anthracnose severity (5.37%) compared with the untreated control (23.33%). This treatment was followed by T7 [ST Penflufen 13.28% w/w + Trifloxystrobin 13.28% w/w @ 1.25 ml kg⁻¹ seed + FS Carbendazim 12% + Mancozeb 63% @ 2 g l⁻¹ water] (5.93%) and T6 [ST Carboxin 37.5% + Thiram 37.5% DS @ 2.5 g kg⁻¹ seed + FS Tebuconazole 10% + Sulphur 65% WG @ 2 g l⁻¹ water] (6.76%), which were statistically at par with T8. The highest plant stand was recorded with seed treatment of Penflufen 13.28% w/w + Trifloxystrobin 13.28% w/w (79.52%) compared with the untreated control (67.62%). Maximum grain yield was obtained in T8 (1310.53 kg ha⁻¹) followed by T7 (1278.87 kg ha⁻¹). Seed treatment combined with foliar application of fungicides also significantly improved plant growth parameters and seed weight over the untreated control. The study demonstrated that the integration of seed treatment with Penflufen + Trifloxystrobin and foliar application of Tebuconazole + Sulphur or Carbendazim + Mancozeb provides effective management of soybean anthracnose under field conditions.