title: Relationships between disease control, green leaf duration, grain quality and the production of alcohol from winter wheat.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Since demand for distilling wheat is expected to increase rapidly as a result of the development of the bioethanol industry, efficient production will become of increasing importance. Achieving this will require an understanding of the agronomic factors that influence both grain yield and alcohol yield. Therefore five field experiments using the winter distilling wheat variety Glasgow were conducted over three seasons (2006-2007, 2007-2008 and 2008-2009) to study the relationships between foliar disease and alcohol yield.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a significant relationship between alcohol yield and the severity of the disease septoria leaf blotch (Septoria tritici), which was present in the experiments from natural infection. Retention of green flag leaf area as affected by disease control following fungicide application was also shown to be important for achieving high alcohol yields. Measurements of grain quality showed that high thousand-grain weight and low grain protein concentration were significantly related to increased alcohol yield.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The experiments showed the importance of disease management to protect alcohol yields in the distilling wheat crop. Fungicides that provide greater disease control and improved green leaf retention are likely to be beneficial to alcohol yield.
authors.affiliation: Crop and Environment Research Centre, Harper Adams University College, Newport, Shropshire, UK. awatson@harper-adams.ac.uk
authors.forename: Andrew M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Watson
authors.forename: Martin C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Hare
authors.forename: Peter S
authors.initials: PS
authors.lastname: Kettlewell
authors.forename: James M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Brosnan
authors.forename: Reginald C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Agu
mesh_terms: D057168:Distillation; D002523:Edible Grain / Q000145:classification / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000592:standards; D000431:Ethanol / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000378:metabolism*; D005658:Fungi; D005659:Fungicides, Industrial / Q000494:pharmacology*; D010935:Plant Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D018515:Plant Leaves / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000382:microbiology; D010940:Plant Proteins; D013045:Species Specificity; D014908:Triticum / Q000254:growth & development / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000382:microbiology
chemical_list: D005659:Fungicides, Industrial; D010940:Plant Proteins; D000431:Ethanol