Ecological Relationships of Verticillium Wilt Suppression of Potato by Green Manures

Abstract

Studies show that once a suppressive effect has been established, a green manure treatment for a single season is sufficient to either maintain or to re-establish the control of Verticillium wilt of potato. Verticillium wilt, caused by Verticillium dahliae Kleb., was controlled on the first years of Russet Burbank potato cropping following 2–3 successive years of green manure treatments. Following this control, yields were increased with the first year of potato cropping, but were reduced during the second consecutive year of cropping with potato. In the second year of continuous cropping with Russet Burbank, total yields were reduced by 10% and U.S. #1 tubers by 40%, and these yield reductions were accompanied by increased soil populations of V. dahliae by >5- fold. Yet, with a single season of an earlier–used green manure treatment (e.g. Austrian winter pea, sudangrass, Dwarf Essex rape, Bridger rape, oats, rye, or sweet corn), Verticillium wilt was again controlled and yields of Russet Burbank were increased to higher levels or to levels that were equivalent to those initially observed following either 2 or 3 successive seasons of green manure treatment. Green manures also demonstrated significant effects on microbial activities, which were inversely related to the incidence of Verticillium wilt. More specific effects on microbial activity and soilborne ecology were shown with increased populations of Fusarium spp. Verticillium wilt was negatively correlated with infections of potato feeder roots and stem-ends of potato tubers by F. equiseti. Exemplifying the effect of a green manure on fungal ecology, sudangrass treatments were shown to have lasting effects on Fusarium avenaceum populations with quantitative changes that extended 5 years beyond the time of soil incorporation with sudangrass.