Ergot spores are being detected on a daily basis at most of the sites. An astounding 18,000 spores were captured at the HAREC site on May 28th. Spore production has increased at the artificially-infested site at COAREC in Madras, with thousands of spores being detected every day between May 29th and June 3rd.
Protective fungicides should be applied at the onset of anthesis to protect unfertilized flowers from infection, and cultivars with prolonged flowering periods may require more than one application. Based on field observations, many cultivars of Kentucky bluegrass and perennial ryegrass are flowering in central Oregon and Hermiston, respectively.