Untreated plots of Robigus, at five sites, are assessed every two weeks for symptoms of Fusarium diseases.
Isolations are also carried out to identify the species present.
Click on site name to view monitoring details
Fusarium Head Blight 2007: Results from Survey of commercially grown crops
Results from the national winter wheat survey show that over 90% of crop samples taken from across England had symptoms of fusarium head blight (FHB).
The majority of ears were infected with Microdochium species, which do not produce mycotoxins, indicating that overall risks of mycotoxin contamination
will be low. However, 30% of samples also contained Fusarium graminearum, which can produce mycotoxins under certain circumstances. There are some
regional differences, with the East Midlands and South West of England having higher levels of F. graminearum than other parts of the country. Farmers
are warned that lodging can increase mycotoxin risk and, of course, harvesting should be carried out as soon as possible.
For the first 60 wheat grain samples analysed as part of the CropMonitor project the average deoxynivalenol (DON) content was 229 parts per billion (ppb).
This is very similar to five year average (2002-2006) of 217 ppb. No samples were above 1250 ppb DON. Based on these results it is expected that only a
low percentage of the 2007 wheat harvest will exceed 1250 ppb DON (the limit for wheat intended for human consumption). Further results from
mycotoxin analysis of the 2007 harvest will be posted here and on www.hgca.com as they become available.
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