Abstract

Faba bean (Vicia faba L.) is a cool legume crop grown in the highlands of Ethiopia, and chocolate spot disease (Botrytis fabae Sard.) occurs in wide areas. Chocolate spot is a serious disease that cause yield reduction on faba bean crop, thus, effective management is essential. Thus the objectives of this study were to assess the influence of sowing dates and the frequency of foliar fungicide (mancozeb) application for the management of chocolate spots and determine the association of sowing dates with chocolate spot disease occurrence. Field experiments were conducted at Sodo Zuria district of kokate research sites during 2014 and 2015 cropping seasons. Treatments were designed in RCBD factorial with three replications. The mean disease severity, AUDPC, and grain yield were found to be statistically significant differences (P<0.05) among the treatments. A high disease severity, AUDPC and low grain yield were recorded from the unsprayed treatment. Four times applications of mancozeb spray on the first July sowing date have effectively reduced disease severity and significantly increased yield. However, cost-effective of these chemical and other faba diseases like rust are becoming economically important diseases is an issue that has to be further investigated