India is the fourth largest oilseed producing country in the world, next to USA, China and Brazil. With its rich agro-ecological diversity, India is ideally suited for growing all the major annual oilseed crops. Rapeseed-mustard is a group of crops which contributes 32 percent of the total oilseed production in India, and it is the second largest indigenous oilseed crop. India holds a premier position in rapeseed-mustard economy of the world with 2nd and 3rd rank in area and production, respectively. This crop accounts for nearly one-third of the oil produced in India, making it the country’s key edible oilseed crop. Despite considerable increase in the productivity and production of the crop under research experiments, a wide gap is found to exist between the potential yield and the yield realized at the farmer’s field, which is largely because of a number of biotic and abiotic stresses to which the rapeseed-mustard crop is exposed. Among the biotic stresses, Alternaria blight disease caused by Alternaria spp. has been reported from all the continents of the world and is one of the important seed borne (externally and/or internally) disease of the crops in India causing up to 70% yield losses. A typical symptom includes formation of spots on leaves, stem and siliquae. Leaf wetness duration at 23-25°C, high relative humidity (100%) increased infection and spread of the disease rapidly. The pathogen may survive in plant debris up to 12 weeks and as internal mycelium up to 12 years. Management practices of seed borne pathogens, which involves individual or combined application of cultural, physical, biological and chemical practices resulting high crop yield.
Diganggana Talukdar
Dept. of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, College of Horticulture, CAU, Ranipool, Sikkim, INDIA
Utpal Dey*
Division of Crop Production, ICAR Research Complex for NEH Region, Umiam, Meghalaya, INDIA
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