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Late blight on potato in the Dhanusha district of Nepal


A ProMED-mail post <http://www.promedmail.org
ProMED-mail is a program of the International Society for Infectious Diseases <http://www.isid.org>

Date: Thu 22 Jan 2015
Source: FreshPlaza [edited]
<http://www.freshplaza.com/article/134123/Nepal-Blight-set-to-destroy-30-procent-potatoes>

Potatoes worth around Rs 80 million [USD800 000] have been destroyed due to blight in Dhanusha district [Central Region] following a cold wave.

According to the District Agriculture Development Office, potatoes were cultivated on 2325 hectares [in the current 2014/15 season], [and of these], 10 percent, or 3135 metric tonnes, [have already been] destroyed by the blight.

Around 35 percent [of] farmers are involved in commercial potato cultivation in the district. The government has been providing subsidies to potato farmers to make them self-dependent.

Agro experts estimate that the blight will [eventually] destroy more than 30 percent of potatoes in the district if the cold wave continues.

--

Communicated by: ProMED-mail <promed@promedmail.org>

[Potato late blight (PLB) is caused by the fungus-like organism _Phytophthora infestans_ and can cause 100 per cent crop loss. The pathogen can also affect tomato and some other solanaceous crops. In potato, it affects leaves as well as tubers, and in tomato, it causes lesions and rotting of leaves, stems, and fruits. The disease is favoured by cool, moist conditions. It can spread rapidly within a crop and destroy it within a few days. Under favourable conditions, epidemics in tomatoes may be even more rapid than in potatoes.

PLB is spread by plant material (including plant debris and volunteer crop plants), mechanical means (including human and insect activities), wind and water. Disease management requires an integrated approach and may include removal of pathogen reservoirs, crop rotation, preventive fungicide treatments of planting material (potato seed tubers, tomato transplants), and fungicide sprays of crops.

Late blight is considered an increasing problem worldwide. More virulent strains with additional fungicide resistances and increased yield losses are emerging frequently. Farm saved or uncertified seed tubers have often been reported as sources of PLB outbreaks in the past. Thus, seed tuber certification schemes have been set up in many countries. Development of resistant cultivars is being counteracted by the adaptability of the pathogen. Clean planting stock (potato seed tubers, tomato seeds or explants) and management strategies for fungicide resistance of the pathogen are considered vital to control PLB outbreaks in the future.

In Nepal, a suspected outbreak of PLB in tomato and potato is also currently being reported from the Mid Western Region (ProMED-mail post 20150115.3095471). The disease is rife in the region.

 

Maps

Nepal:

<http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/middle_east_and_asia/nepal_pol90.jpg>

Nepal regions and districts:

<http://ncthakur.itgo.com/map04.htm>

Danusha district:

<http://ncthakur.itgo.com/districtmaps/dhanusa_district.htm>

 

Pictures

Late blight on potato:

<http://www.potatomuseum.com/images/exblightfieldwithinsert.jpg>

Late blight on tomato:

<http://ipm.illinois.edu/ifvn/volume15/images/tomato_late_blight.jpg>

 

Links

Information on late blight:

<http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/3000/3102.html>,

<http://vegetablemdonline.ppath.cornell.edu/factsheets/Potato_LateBlt.htm>

and

<http://www.apsnet.org/edcenter/intropp/lessons/fungi/Oomycetes/Pages/LateBlight.aspx>

Late blight information and resources via:

<http://euroblight.net/>

_P. infestans_ taxonomy:

<http://www.indexfungorum.org/Names/NamesRecord.asp?RecordID=232148>

Global Initiative on Late Blight:

<https://research.cip.cgiar.org/confluence/display/GILBWEB/Home>

 - Mod.DHA

 

A HealthMap/ProMED-mail map can be accessed at:

<http://healthmap.org/promed/p/139>.]

 

[See Also:

Undiagnosed disease, potato & tomato - Nepal: (BN) 20150115.3095471

2014

----

Late blight, potato - Bangladesh: (KH) 20140320.2345850

2013

----

Yellow leaf curl & blights, tomato - Pakistan: (SD) 20130206.1531086

2012

----

Undiagnosed disease, tomato - India: (UT) 20121213.1450713

2011

----

Undiagnosed disease, potato - Bhutan: (MO) 20110613.1808

2010

----

Late blight, seed potato, tomato - India: (HP) 20101015.3738 Late blight, potato - India: (KA) control 20100505.1458 Late blight, potato - Bangladesh: (RJ) 20100126.0285 Late blight, tomato - India: (UT) 20100121.0236

2009

----

Leaf blight, potato - Bangladesh (02): (RJ) 20091231.4398 Late blight, potato - India (03): (MH) 20091008.3491 Late blight, potato - UK, Bangladesh 20090406.1332 Late blight, potato - India, Bangladesh: update 20090310.0989 Blight & undiagnosed disease, potato, chilli - Bhutan 20090211.0612 Late blight, potato - India (02): (WB) 20090131.0435 Leaf blight, potato - Bangladesh: (KH) 20090121.0255 Late blight, potato - Nepal (BR) 20090114.0162 Late blight, potato - India: (PB) 20090103.0018] 



More news from: ISID (International Society for Infectious Diseases)


Website: http://www.isid.org

Published: January 28, 2015

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