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so won't kill the disease. It is best to spray before the canopy closes if possible. If not, penetra on into the plant stand reaching the lower leaves is difficult. It would only be a good idea to spray if the disease levels are high enough to warrant applica on and if a yield increase is to be expected. It is important to consider whether the yield loss caused by not spraying is higher than the cost of applica on. Ascochyta Scorecard There is an Ascochyta Predic on Scorecard available to help producers make the "to spray or not to spray" decision for this disease. It considers four aspects related to disease spread: • Crop Canopy Thin, moderate, or heavy • Leaf wetness None, low, moderate, or high • Percent of plants showing symptoms None, low (<20%), moderate (20-50%) or high (50-100%) • 5 day weather forecast Dry, unse led, showers, wet The predic on scorecard assigns values to each of these factors which when added up will help the producer determine the risk to the crop. Using this chart, field inspec ons should be done twice a week and a score is added up for each factor. If the score is above 65 points, a fungicide applica on is recommended. If the score is below 65 points, an applica on is not deemed necessary at the me but field inspec ons should con nue. This predic on scorecard is only a tool to help make the decision easier and the producer must do what they feel would be best for their farm. Keep in mind that more than two sprays per season is not recommended and pre-harvest intervals need to be considered. Finally, the crop must be healthy to start with or a fungicide applica on will not save it. Ascochyta in peas. Peas with Ascochyta blo er. Mycosphaerella blight. P U L S E C R O P N E W S S U M M E R 2 0 1 8 | 1 7

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