Effect of barley yellow dwarf virus on the yield of wheat in NSW

Abstract

The effect of barley yellow dwarf virus (BYDV) on yields of wheat in New South Wales was assessed in field trials at two sites over three seasons. Regular applications of an organophosphate insecticide, demeton-S-methyl, were used to control the insect vectors of the disease. Results indicated that in most seasons BYDV is only a minor disease of wheat in New South Wales. Rhopalosiphum padi appeared to be the most important aphid vector of the disease.