Optimal control of foliar disease dynamics for multiple maize varieties

Maize is a very important food crop world-wide and is vulnerable to diseases. Maize varieties that have high disease resistance are highly recommended for economic and health reasons. We consider a maize field with multiply varieties and develop a mathematical model to investigate the impact of foliar disease on the population dynamics. The possible benefit of considering control measures in reducing the spread of foliar diseases are evaluated. Results show that farmers must be aware of the disease dynamics of each variety as the dynamics vary. Also, in controlling diseases some methods are more effective than others. For the example given here controlling susceptibility of seeds to disease was the most effective method. As controlling diseases can be costly, optimal methods are important. Our results show that the most effective controls are those introduced at the outset of an outbreak and this can reduce the spread of diseases with the least cost.