An eco-friendly material that could replace current fungicides has been announced by British researchers following a successful on-farm trial.
Scientists at the University of Nottingham have completed a field trial of a material they have developed to help protect crops from fungi.
Results from the first trial with wheat are particularly encouraging, according to researchers, and there is a lot of scope to optimise it further.
Five to ten percent of global wheat yields are lost to fungal infections even with the use of resistant crop varieties and fungicides.
Simon Avery, professor at the university, explained more: “The test material is not toxic but works by passively resisting attachment of fungal spores to protect surfaces from fungal infection, including crop surfaces.
“We identified two lead polymer candidates by bio-performance testing using in vitro microplates and leaf-based assays.
"These were then taken forward into a programme to optimise and scale-up their synthesis and compound them into a spray formulation that could be used on crops.”
Sprayed directly onto wheat at timings conventional for fungicides, the trial has provided the first real-world scale exemplification of how the material interacts with crops.
The small plot trial compared the two polymer candidates to a multisite fungicide and two commercial fungicide programmes.
Valentina Crucitti, research fellow at the university said: “Our findings showed that the material significantly reduced fungal infection by the fungus Septoria tritici by up to 26%.
"The crop grew just as well as the control group – providing an alternative that appears safer for the environment, wildlife, and people, and is effective too.”
For the field trial, the university partnered with ADAS, an independent provider of agricultural and environmental consultancy.
Chloe Morgan, research scientist at ADAS, said the results of the field trial were 'very promising'.
"With further optimisation they could play a vital role in future disease control strategies, either by replacing or being applied in mixture with conventional fungicides."
Attention is now turning to a second field trial that’s in the diary for this year to further improve the polymer.
