Incorporation of Cultivar and Fungicide Selection into Disease Advisory Program for Peanuts

Four peanut cultivars (Bailey, CHAMPS, Sullivan, and Wynne) were evaluated for disease resistance/tolerance, yield, and quality when grown under different fungicide programs and in locations varying in disease pressure. Disease incidence and severity varied among the three test locations, with high levels of leaf spot and moderate levels of CBR at the Hare Road location, moderate leaf spot and high CBR and Sclerotinia at the Tidewater AREC, and low levels of disease at the Carson, VA location Overall, Sullivan had good leaf spot tolerance and both Sullivan and Bailey had good Sclerotinia and CBR tolerance. All varieties yielded well in the absence of disease pressure (Carson location), but Sullivan was consistently the highest yielding variety. Grade characteristics varied among cultivars, but while fungicide treatments impacted yield, they had no effect on grade. The calculated corrnnercial value on a per pm.md basis did not vary among cultivars or fungicide treatments, so only differences in yield impacted total value of the crop. Similar trials will be conducted in 2015 to finther evaluate the performance of peanut cultivars and the value of fungicide applications.