Tuber soft rot and concentrations of Erwinia spp. in potato washing plants in South Australia

Potato tubers and water samples from four washing plants in South Australia were collected on multiple occasions between 1998 and 2002 to determine the main source of bacterial soft rot infection on tubers and the level of Erwinia spp. in wash water. Incubating tubers in an environment conducive to...

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Published inAustralasian plant pathology Vol. 36; no. 4; pp. 309 - 312
Main Authors Wicks, T. J., Hall, B. H., Morgan, B. A.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Dordrecht Springer Nature B.V 01.01.2007
Subjects
Colonies
Colony-forming cells
Erwinia
Infection
Soft rot
Soil
Solanum tuberosum
Tubers
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Summary:Potato tubers and water samples from four washing plants in South Australia were collected on multiple occasions between 1998 and 2002 to determine the main source of bacterial soft rot infection on tubers and the level of Erwinia spp. in wash water. Incubating tubers in an environment conducive to soft rot showed that an average of 26% of tubers collected from the field developed soft rot. This increased to 64% or more when tubers were immersed in water. The incidence and severity of soft rot increased further after tubers were placed in a rotating tumbler to remove adhering soil. Concentrations of Erwinia spp. around 10 4 colony forming units (cfu)/mL and occasionally 10 6  cfu/mL were found in wash water collected at various sites in the washing plant and from ponded recycled water. The most severe amount of rotting developed when tubers were immersed in Erwinia spp. concentrations of 10 4  cfu/mL or greater, suggesting that frequent replacing of potato wash water with clean water to reduce the levels of bacteria may be a useful method of managing the problem.
Bibliography:Australasian Plant Pathology publishes new and significant research in all fields of plant pathology. Distribution and readership of the journal is worldwide, but emphasis is placed on strengthening its role as the major publishing outlet in the Australasian region. Australasia is interpreted in the broadest sense to include not only Australia, New Zealand and Papua New Guinea, but also the Indian Ocean, Pacific and Asian regions
ObjectType-Article-2
SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1
ObjectType-Feature-1
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ISSN:0815-3191
1448-6032
DOI:10.1071/AP07026