Cercospora leaf spot (CLS) epidemics in sugar beet have been increasing in recent years causing higher use of fungicides. Concomitantly, the availability of effective fungicides is at risk because of resistance development in the fungus, the lack of new active ingredients as well as restrictive approval practices. A key option for an integrated management of CLS is cultivation of resistant vari...

ABSTRACT Severe Cercospora leaf spots epidemics in sugar beet during the late 1980s and early 1990s in southern Germany prompted us to initiate investigations on the epidemiology of the causal agent, Cercospora beticola. The data set involved 69 field trials (1993 to 2003) focusing on factors affecting the epidemic onset of this disease. Observations were made at weekly intervals, recording the...