Studies on Fusarium wilt of Watermelon by using Antifungal Agents: An Invitro in Sights

Abstract

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) is highly prone to Fusarium wilt, caused by a deadly soil-borne pathogen called Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. niveum (FON). Changes in production practices in crops, reduction in usage of fumigation with methyl bromide, crop rotation activities, and increasing human population, led to a resurgence of more virulent strains of FON. When resistant varieties are unavailable, the disease must be managed through a combination of integrated disease control practices. We conducted in vitro screening of botanicals where Allium cepa exhibited maximum inhibition of 80.32 and 82.62 percent at 5 and 10 percent concentrations, respectively. In vitro evaluation of bioagents revealed the maximum percent inhibition by T. harzianum (83.03%) followed by B. subtilis, A. flavus, P. fluorescence, T. viride, and A. niger. Fungicides by Poisoned Food Technique showed that a combination of carbendazim +mancozeb was effective in mycelial inhibition of 99.74 and 99.81 percent at 500 and 1000 ppm concentration respectively. The knowledge obtained from these in vitro findings can be applied in the field at a large scale for reducing and managing watermelon wilt disease.