Screening of Barley Germplasm and Released Cultivars against Stripe Disease (Drechslera graminea) under Artifical Inoculation Condition

Barley (Hordeum vulgare L.) is the fourth largest cereal crop in the world with a share of 7% of the global cereal production (Pal et al., 2012). It is mainly grown as a rabi season crop in different temperate regions of the world including India. Barley is used as a feed for animals, malt for industrial uses and for human food. At present, Barley is subjected to various fungal, bacterial, viral and noninfectious diseases. The major barley diseases prevalent in the world as well as in India include leaf rust, covered and loose smut, spot or net blotch, powdery mildew, stripe disease, bacterial blight and molya. Stripe disease caused by Drechslera graminea (Telomorph: Pyrenophora graminea) is an important seed borne disease of barley and responsible for 21.6% 31.9% yield losses in Rajasthan. Moreover, yield loss up to 73% have also been reported where cultivation of susceptible cultivars are in practice (Mathur and Bhatnagar, 1991; Arabi et al., 2004). A range of systemic and contact fungicides are available as seed dresser for the seed borne disease control (Singh and Khetarpal, 2005). However, their continuous application not only disturbed the ecosystem, but also rendered the pathogen resistant for the fungicide (Soni et al., 2017). Hence, the use of resistant barley cultivars is one of the economic and best sustainable alternatives for controlling barley stripe disease. Therefore, screening of the available released varieties and genotypes of barley were carried out to identify the source of resistance against the pathogen of stripe disease of barley.