Screening of Selected Garlic Varieties Against White Rot Disease Caused by <i>Sclerotium cepivorum</i> at Dhaka City of Bangladesh

Abstract

White rot caused by Sclerotium cepivorum fungus is a crucial soil borne disease on garlic damaging allium production globally including Bangladesh. In this study eight isolates of Sclerotium cepivorum were isolated from naturally infected garlic plants collected from the central farm and isolated in the central lab of Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, Dhaka, Bangladesh to determine the prevalence of white rot disease incidence and severity and characterized for cultural and morphological variabilities of the isolated pathogen. Eight garlic varieties viz. BAU Rashun-1, BAU Rashun-2, BARI Rashun-1, BARI Rashun-2, BARI Rashun-3, BARI Rashun-4, Local Deshi and Local Indian were explored with three replication in the study. Results showed that the highest disease incidence and severity against white rot disease (33.33% and 89.33%) were appeared in the BARI Rashun-3 variety. Lowest disease incidence and severity (5.00% and 60%) were recorded on Local Indian variety. Almost all of the isolates had cottony fluffy growth on potato dextrose agar. The colony color varied from milky white to cottony watery white with regular, circular, smooth, cotton like sometimes striped surface texture was found. After 10 days of incubation all the isolates had suppressed growth on PDA media as it is a fast growing pathogen.