The chemical control of foliar diseases in soybean can be achieved by using genetic, cultural and chemical practices. The use of activators of plant defense mechanisms is an alternative for disease control. An experiment was carried out with the cultivars 'IAS 5', 'CD 201' and 'RS 10' aiming to evaluate the efficacy of the inclusion of Acibenzolar-S-Methyl (ASM) to the chemical control program of foliar diseases in soybean. The effect of ASM was evaluated separately and mixture with Difenoconazol sprayed on to plants at the growth stages of R3, R4, R5. 1 Azoxystrobin was sprayed on R5.1. The variables evaluated were diseases severities at the end of the crop, desfoliation, green foliar area and yield. The inclusion of ASM to the chemical control program of foliar diseases increased the efficacy of the fungicides in most of the cases but with variations among cultivars. Best results were obtained with applications of Difenoconazol + ASM at R3 and R4 stages, but without efficacy when applied with Azoxystrobin at the R5.1 stages. Yield increase was affected by host tolerance to the diseases, but more evident on the cultivars 'CD 201' and 'RS 10' with application of ASM + Difenoconazol at the R4 stage.
mechanisms of host defense; chemical control; systemic adquired resistance
