Abstract
Diseases caused by fungi and oomycetes lead to reduced productivity of pepper (Capsicum spp.) in Ethiopia. Currently, knowledge about severity and geographical distribution of fungal diseases in pepper producing areas is limited. Thus this study was aimed: to map the geographical distribution of economically relevant Capsicum diseases and to identify, document, prioritize, and update the status of fungal infectious diseases across the country. A survey was conducted throughout major pepper agro-ecological zones in Ethiopia for two consecutive years, 2018 and 2019/20. Districts were surveyed based on pepper production at intervals of 4 to 10 kilometers from each sampling zone of major pepper growing areas. Global positioning system (GPS) was used to mark each sampling point using a GPS receiver for altitude and coordinates. Nine major pathogenic fungi were identified in samples collected from different pepper-producing areas across the country. Cercospora leaf spot caused by Cercospora capsici was found prevalent in 39.8% of the 133 fields studied, followed by Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. capsici, and Phytophthora collar, root, and fruit rot caused by Phytophthora capsici, prevalent in 21.1% and 15.8% fields, respectively. The maximum overall mean percent severity index (69.5%) was recorded for Fusarium stem and root rot (Fusarium solani) followed by damping-off (56.7%) and Fusarium wilt (55.4%). The current study indicated the importance of fungal diseases, particularly soil-borne diseases. The molecular characterizations, primers development for important pathogens, and genome-wide screening of Capsicum genotypes in Ethiopia required to advance environmentally safe and affordable disease control methods.
Highlights
Capsicum (Capsicum spp.), known as pepper, is a major vegetable and spice crop that originated in the American tropics and is grown for fresh, dried, and processed products worldwide (Bosland et al, 2012)
This was followed by Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. capsici, and Phytophthora collar, root and fruit rot caused by Phytophthora capsici, prevalent in 21.1% and 15.8% fields, respectively (Figure 1 and Table 1)
Fusarium stem and root rot caused by Fusarium solani, Phytophthora collar, root and fruit rot caused by Phytophthora capsici were among economically important diseases of pepper detected in major growing areas across the country at the study period
Summary
Capsicum (Capsicum spp.), known as pepper, is a major vegetable and spice crop that originated in the American tropics and is grown for fresh, dried, and processed products worldwide (Bosland et al, 2012). Due to the significant variation in many traits, which makes this crop extremely versatile and suitable for innumerable applications, there is growing interest and fascination in the genus Capsicum for innumerable uses as food and non-food products (Bosland et al, 2012). They are high value spice and industrial raw material to produce oleoresin commodity and have been given top priority in vegetable research in Ethiopia (Dessie et al, 2019). Small-scale farmers and commercial growers could grow the crop for its fruits in different regions of
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