Evaluation scale of Fusarium Head Blight symptoms in barley

Fusarium Head Blight (FHB), or scab, is a cereal disease widespread throughout the world and it has been studied mainly in wheat. FHB can cause significant yield losses and quality reductions, especially if during fungal infection dangerous mycotoxins for the human and animal health are produced. In the last years, in Italy, barley production for malting industry has undergone a positive trend that it shifts major attention to the barley diseases. FHB symptoms in barley differ in part from those in wheat. In wheat, premature death or bleaching of spikelets is a typical symptom, particularly clear on emerged immature heads. Pink to salmon-orange spore masses of the fungus are often formed on the infected spikelets and glumes during prolonged wet weather. In barley, symptoms of infection are shown by a bleached appearance too, but also a browning or water-soaked appearance or even a little brown spots on the glume are noticed. Salmon-orange spore masses of the fungus can be rarely observed. In wheat the severity index of the FHB is calculated with the rating scale proposed by Parry et al. (1984) that evaluates the percentage area infected on individual ears with values among 0% and 90%. The aim of this work is to set up a FHB scale for barley, similar to that used by Parry, taking as reference tow-row barley cultivar artificially inoculated in an experimental field. This rating scale can be useful also to the breeders to evaluate the different susceptibility of barley cultivars.