Effect of Maturity Level and Potato Cultivar on Development of Fusarium Dry Rot in Norway

• Published in: Potato research Vol. 58; no. 3; pp. 205 - 219
• Main Authors: Heltoft, Pia, Molteberg, Eldrid Lein, Nærstad, Ragnhild, Hermansen, Arne
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Dordrecht Springer Netherlands 01.09.2015; Springer; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Agricultural practices; Agriculture; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Cultivars; Dry matter; Fusarium avenaceum; Fusarium culmorum; Fusarium sambucinum; Integrated pest management; Laila; Life Sciences; Maturity; Pest control; Physiological aspects; Plant diseases; Plant Genetics and Genomics; Plant Sciences; Plant Systematics/Taxonomy/Biogeography; Potatoes; Solanum tuberosum; Studies; Vegetables; Norway; dry rot; Maturity; Cultivar resistance
• ISSN: 0014-3065; 1871-4528
• DOI: 10.1007/s11540-015-9300-x

The effect of maturity levels in potato tubers on Fusarium dry rot development caused by four Fusarium species ( Fusarium coeruleum , Fusarium avenaceum , Fusarium sambucinum and Fusarium culmorum ) was studied in two trials during 2012–2013. In addition, ten commonly grown potato cultivars in Norway were evaluated for resistance to F. coeruleum , F. avenaceum and F. sambucinum. F. sambucinum was the most aggressive species, while F. avenaceum and F. culmorum only caused minor dry rot symptoms in the tubers. Maturity, described as chemical, physical and physiological maturation as well as vine maturation, significantly affected dry rot development in tubers when inoculated with F. sambucinum . We found that immature tubers, having high sucrose content, low dry matter content and poor skin set were most susceptible to Fusarium spp. There were differences in susceptibility to Fusarium spp. among cultivars. The early maturing cultivars Berber, Rutt and Laila developed the most severe dry rot symptoms. In general, F. sambucinum caused more dry rot, but there were significant differences between isolates. The present study underlines that cropping the potatoes in order to reach a high level of maturity and the use of resistant cultivars are important elements in an integrated pest management (IPM) strategy against Fusarium dry rot in Norway.