Wheat leaf rust Wheat leaf rust Wheat leaf rust is a fungal disease that affects wheat, barley and rye stems, leaves and grains. In temperate zones it is destructive on winter wheat because the pathogen overwinters. Infections can lead up to 20% yield loss, which is exacerbated by dying leaves, which fertilize the fungus. The pathogen is "Puccinia" rust fungus. "Puccinia triticina" causes "black rust", "P. recondita" causes "brown rust", and "P. striiformis" causes "yellow rust". It is the most prevalent of all the wheat rust diseases, occurring in most wheat growing regions. It causes serious epidemics in North America, Mexico and South
Wheat yellow rust In 1953, Hylander et al. (1953) revived the name P. striiformis. "Yellow rust" takes its name from the appearance of yellow-colored stripes produced parallel along the venations of each leaf blade. These yellow stripes are actually characteristic of uredinia that produce yellow colored urediniospores. Primary hosts of yellow rust are "Triticum aestivum" (bread wheat), "Triticum turgidum" (durum wheat), triticale, and a few "Hordeum vulgare" (barley) cultivars. The alternate host was discovered by accident in 2010. Species of common barberry plants (the alternate host of wheat stem rust) were found harbouring stripe rust. When transferred to grass hosts, Kentucky Bluegrass was