Integrated disease management to control gall rust disease on the seedling and sapling of Falcataria moluccana

Several control methods have been developed to control the disease caused by Uromycladium falcatariae. However, it is still used a single approach that may not receive satisfactory results. This study applied integrated disease management that consisted of physical, chemical, and biological approaches to reduce gall rust disease incidence. In the nursery, the control methods used were selecting nursery location, applying the biological agent Trichoderma sp, and regular spraying with fungicides. Meanwhile, after planting, the control methods used were regularly spraying with fungicides, pruning the infected tissues, and fertilizer application. Three active ingredients were used for fungicide application: tebuconazole, a mixture of azoxystrobin and difenoconazole, and tribasic copper sulfate. The result showed no gall rust disease incidence in the seedling until it was ready for planting (4 months old). In addition, the application also gave positive results on seedling growth performance compared to the control. After planting, the incidence of gall rust disease can be reduced between 16.5-32.5% when the saplings were three months old and 14.3-26.3% when the saplings were ten months old. Fungicide with the active ingredient, a mixture of azoxystrobin and difenoconazole, showed more effective protection against gall rust disease infection compared to other active ingredients.

An Integrated Disease Management of Oil Palms Affected by Bud Rot Results in Shorter Recovery Times

Bud rot is a limiting disease that affects most oil palm crops destroying thousands of hectares in Latin America. Bud rot (BR) is caused by the oomycete Phytophthora palmivora (Butler). Integrated disease management (IDM) technology has been used to control the disease, which slows down the progress of the disease, allowing palm recovery. However, the effect of this technology on the recovery speed of treated palms is not well known. We studied the time taken for palm recovery from BR under the integrated management approach. The study was carried out on 21 oil palm commercial cultivars dura × pisifera (D × P) and O × G hybrids affected by BR in the Colombian oil palm Central Zone. The analysis included different recovery times (RT), the severity degree, time of the year (wet or dry season), number of reinfections, and cultivar. The RT of bud rot-affected palms ranges from 103 to 315 days, with an average of 202.8 days when an IDM is used. RT was lower than that reported in the diseased palms without IDM (540 days). According to the severity degree, the RT lasted 202 days for severity degree 1, 198 days for severity degree 2, and 222 with severity degree 3 and 4. In comparison, there was no significant difference between dry and rainy seasons in RT. Differences between cultivars were found; however, under IDM, all cultivars showed low RT. The IDM has a positive impact in reducing the RT to BR. Low RT has indirect effects minimizing potential yield losses, improving the number of successfully recovered palms, and reducing the risk of disease dissemination.

Advances in False Smut of Rice and its Integrated Diseases Management: A Review

Rice is an important nutritive crop and primary staple food throughout the world. To reach the increasing global grain demand and food security, rice production needs to be monitored and increased. However, abiotic and biotic stresses have impeded rice cultivation both in tropical and sub-tropical regions. Among biotic stressors, false smut of rice incited by fungus Ustilaginoidea virens (Cooke, 1878) is one of the most common and serious disease throughout the rice cultivation areas and cause up to 40% loss in its yield. The disease is hard to stop, because fungus infect the crop during flowering stage and symptoms of the disease are evident after emergence of rice panicle. The fungus completely destroys the grains and converts them into spore balls, which are toxic and unfit for seed production. Further, control of false smut of rice through fungicide application is feasible; however, high usage of fungicides has led to the resistance development in causal agent besides environmental pollution. In this review, we update the most recent progress regarding the pathogen, its distribution, taxonomy, disease cycle and integrated disease management.

Evaluation of Pseudomonas fluorescens Strains, Fungicides and Non-conventional Chemicals Against Botyrotinia ricini Causing Grey Mold Disease in Castor

A study was made to evaluate the efficacy of Pseudomonas fluorescens strains, fungicides and non-conventional chemicals against Botryotinia ricini, causing grey mold disease in castor, under in vitro conditions. Among the 40 strains isolated from rhizosphere soil samples of different crops across the State of Telangana, India, only eight strains inhibited the growth of B. ricini under dual culture technique, of which strains Pf 21 (90.56%), Pf 23 (88.89%), Pf 34 (86.11%) and Pf 36 (84.17%) were the most effective. Among the seven chemicals (four fungicides and three non-conventional chemicals) tested for their efficacy, carbendazim followed by propiconazole had significant antagonistic effect against B. ricini. Exposure of healthy castor capsules to B. ricini and P. fluorescens for different time periods revealed that strains Pf 34 and Pf 36 were effective in completely inhibiting the growth of B. ricini and hence these two strains have been identified as effective biocontrol agents, on par with carbendazim, which offer scope for sustainable and integrated disease management of grey mold disease in castor.