Standard area diagram set to assess rust severity on eucalyptus leaves

This study aimed to develop and validate a standard area diagram set (SADs) to help assess rust severity caused by Austropuccinia psidii on eucalyptus leaves. The SADs has eight colour images of leaves with severity values ranging from 0.97% to 37.3%. The SADs were validated by 16 raters, who assessed the same set of 50 images twice: the first without the SADs and the second using it as an aid. Accuracy and precision of the estimates were determined based on Lin's concordance correlation coefficient, and the inter-rater reliability was measured using the coefficient of determination (R-2) and intraclass correlation. The estimates of severity of eucalyptus rust were more accurate, precise and reliable using SADs. These results demonstrate the value of SADs for several activities, including epidemiological studies, treatments comparison, disease monitoring, decision-making in eucalyptus rust management measures, and in breeding programs.