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Adjust times of sowing to avoid favourable environmental conditions for rust outbreak (20-25 °C, < 85% HR)
Eradicate volunteer groundnut plants since they can host the fungus
Practice crop rotation with two cereal crops, one after the other (e.g. with maize, sorghum, rice and sugarcane)
Control weeds as the disease may be favoured by the high humidity in a dense crop canopy
Ensure a sufficiently long break of at least 4 weeks between successive groundnut crops where the disease is present
Plant new crops as far as possible from infested fields. If this is not possible, then do not plant downwind of them
Remove any volunteer plants and weeds of the Arachis genus which can host the fungus
Keep weeds to a minimum in order to increase groundnut yield and to minimise humdity levels surrounding the crop (humid conditions favour the disease)
Monitoring
Leaf rust is caused by a fungus and can affect all above ground parts of the plant
Monitor twice a week for symptoms on leaves, starting 30 days after germination:
Orange-coloured pustules appear primarily on the undersides of the leaves, and turn reddish-brown
Pustules may later appear on the upper surfaces opposing the pustules of the lower surfaces
Rust-damaged leaves become necrotic and dry up, but remain attached to the plant
In severe damage, the crop has a burnt appearance
Infected plants tend to mature 2-3 weeks earlier than those that remain healthy
Symptoms may first be noticed within patches of a field
Monitor carefully for rust development during favourable conditions (20-25 °C, free water on the leaf surface and high relative humidity)
Consider applying control measures as soon as rust spots are seen, even if only on a few plants
Direct Control
At an early stage of the disease development, remove affected plants and carry them away from the field in a plastic bag and burn the debris to prevent the spores from spreading. Plant debris can also be used as fodder
Don't move infected plants to disease-free areas
CREATED/UPDATED: December 2017 PRODUCED BY: Plantwise
