Effect of sowing time on disease incidence and infection of Karnal bunt in wheat (Triticum aestivum L.)

Karnal bunt incited by Tilletia indica is an internationally quarantine disease of wheat (Triticum aestivum L). Field experiment was conducted using ten cultivated wheat varieties to study the effect of sowing time on the disease progression. The study revealed that wheat crop sown during the 2nd fortnight of Nov reduced the disease severity compared to earliest sowing dates. The disease incidence was lowest in the crop sown during 2nd fortnight of Nov (8.05%) followed by crop sown on the 1st fortnight of Nov (8.90%) and the highest disease incidence was observed on the 2nd fortnight of Oct (9.37%). Similarly, the coefficient of infection was lowest in the second fortnight of November (2.41%) followed by the crops sown on the first fortnight of November (3.64%) and the second fortnight of October had a higher coefficient of infection (5.12%) in all cultivated varieties.