Snapshot

Fungicides are used as a formulated product consisting of an active ingredient plus inert ingredients that improve the performance of the product. Fungicides are typically mixed with water then applied by spraying. Application equipment ranges from small hand-held and back-pack sprayers to large spray units carried by tractors or aircraft. A few fungicides are applied as dusts. Fungicides can also be applied in greenhouses as smoke, mist, fog or aerosol. Coverage of all parts of the plant susceptible to the disease is critical because very few fungicides can move adequately throughout a plant. Advancements are continually being made to nozzles and sprayers to improve coverage.

Why are Fungicides Needed?

Diseases are a common occurrence on plants, often having a significant economic impact on yield and quality, thus managing diseases is an essential component of production for most crops. Broadly, there are three main reasons fungicides are used: (a) To control a disease during the establishment and development of a crop.

(b) To increase productivity of a crop and to reduce blemishes. Diseased food crops may produce less because their leaves, which are needed for photosynthesis, are affected by the disease. Blemishes can affect the edible part of the crop or, in the case of ornamentals, their attractiveness, which both can affect the market value of the crop.

(c) To improve the storage life and quality of harvested plants and produce. Some of the greatest disease losses occur post-harvest.

Application Method:

Fungicides are applied as dust, granules, gas, and, most commonly, liquid. They are applied to:

1. (a) Seed, bulbs, roots of transplants, and other propagative organs. These treatments are usually done by the seed company. Some treatments need to be done by the grower on-site at the time of planting. The goal is to kill pathogens that are on the planting material or to protect the young plant from pathogens in the soil.
2. (b) Soil either in-furrow at planting, after planting as a soil drench (including through drip irrigation), or as a directed spray around the base of the plant.
3. (c) Foliage and other aboveground parts of plants by means of a sprayer.
4. (d) Inside of trees via trunk injection.(f) Harvested produce, as a dip or spray in the packinghouse.