Fungicide seed treatments to improve seedling emergence of perennial ryegrass Lolium perenne and the effect of different cultivars and soils

Seeds of perennial ryegrass Lolium perenne treated with four fungicides, benomyl, captan, iprodione and metalaxyl, used singly and in all combinations were sown in soil in pots. The soil was maintained at a low moisture content to predispose the seedlings to pre-emergence infection by soil-borne fungi. Thirteen of the fifteen fungicide treatments significantly increased seedling emergence and all but one contained benomyl and/or captan. In another pot experiment, a combination of benomyl and captan was tested against four similar treatments, carbendazim+captan, thiabendazole+captan, thiabendazole+metalaxyl and thiabendazole+thiram and also drazoxolon. Only benomyl+captan and drazoxolon did not increase seedling emergence significantly. A natural infection of the seedlings by powdery mildew Erysiphe graminis was reduced significantly by all treatments except thiabendazole+thiram and drazoxolon. Only car-bendazim+captan significantly increased the dry weight of seedlings per pot 98 days after sowing. Benomyl+captan seed treatment significantly increased seedling emergence in 9 of 16 soils collected from widespread sites. One perennial ryegrass cultivar, Parcour, was used in the above experiments and in a comparison with 12 other diploid cultivars its response to benomyl seed treatment was about mid-range.