First Report of Preharvest Fruit Rot of Strawberry Caused by Botrytis cinerea in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Province and Islamabad (Pakistan)

Abstract

Strawberry (Fragaria × ananassa Duch.) is an emerging fruit crop in Pakistan, cultivated on approximately 1500 hectares. A survey was conducted during each crop season viz. 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 in geographically important strawberry growing regions of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Islamabad . Fruit rot was observed in all surveyed fields that indicates 100 % prevalence of the disease in the study area . Affected tissue was covered with a thin layer of grayish white to dark gray mycelium, which later became fuzzy due to profusion of conidiophores, and rot enveloped the entire fruit. Rotted fruit gradually dried, becoming hard and mummified. Fruit tissue segments at the margins of lesions on infected fruit were cut into 3- to 5 mm2 pieces, surface disinfected with 2% sodium hypochlorite for 1 min, rinsed by washing three times in sterile distilled water, and blotted dry. Disinfected segments were placed on Czapek-Dox (CZ) agar and incubated at 25 ± 2°C. Grayish colonies were observed 3 to 5 days later. Colonies...