Optical Sensing for Evaluating the Severity of Disease Caused by Cladosporium sp. in Barley under Warmer Conditions

Crop yield is critically related to the physiological responses and disease resistance of the crop, which could be strongly affected by high temperature conditions. We observed the changes in the growth of barley under higher than ambient air-temperature conditions using a temperature gradient field chamber (TGFC) during winter and spring. Before the stem extension stage of barley growth, Cladosporium sp. spontaneously appeared in the TGFC. The severity of disease became serious under warmer temperature conditions. Further, the stomata closed as the severity of the disease increased; however, stomatal conductance at the initial stage of disease was higher than that of the normal leaves. This was likely due to the Iwanov effect, which explains that stressed plants rapidly and transiently open their stomata before longer-term closure. In this study, we tested three optical methods: soil-plant analysis development (SPAD) chlorophyll index, photochemical reflectance index (PRI), and maximum quantum yield (Fv/Fm). These rapid evaluation methods have not been used in studies focusing on disease stress, although some studies have used these methods to monitor other stresses. These three indicative parameters revealed that diseased barley exhibited lower values of these parameters than normal, and with the increase in disease severity, these values declined further. Our results will be useful in efficient monitoring and evaluation of crop diseases under future warming conditions.