Assessment of varietal response and its impacts on different cane attributes due to sugarcane wilt caused by Fusarium sacchari Aaradhna1,*, Minnatullah Md.2 1M.Sc. (Ag) Student, Department of Plant Pathology, Sugarcane Research Institute (SRI-RPCAU-Pusa) 2Associate Professor cum Senior Scientist, Dr. Rajendra Prasad Central Agricultural University, Pusa, Samastipur, Bihar, Pin 848125 (India) *Corresponding Author's Email: aaradhnabhu@gmail.com
Online published on 28 March, 2024. Abstract Sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L.) of Poaceae family is an important agro-industrial crop of tropical and subtropical regions of India. A vast industrial set-up, the value-chain, supply-chain, and several stakeholders are mutually impacted by the success and failure of the sugarcane crop. In Bihar, more than 20 diseases of sugarcane have been reported which are caused by pathogens of varying group, which get sufficient time to establish themselves in the long duration annual crop of sugarcane. The crop is affected by majority of diseases among which wilt disease caused by Fusarium sacchari is one of the most prevalent in the Bihar region. Out of thirty evaluated varieties against Fusarium sacchari, it was observed that 6 varieties (20.69%) were resistant, 15 varieties (51.72%) were moderately resistant, 5 varieties (17.24%) were moderately susceptible, and 3 varieties (10.34%) were susceptible in field condition. The pot experiments revealed 6 varieties (20.69%) as resistant, 11 varieties (37.93%) as moderately resistant, 4 varieties (13.79%) as moderately susceptible and 8 varieties (31.03%) as susceptible. A significant loss was noticed in different quantitative and qualitative attributes of sugarcane due to wilt disease. The reduction in germination% (6.14%-38.20%), settling mortality% (4.55%-41.24%), cane height (6.66%27.83%), cane girth (2.67%- 45.16%), cane weight (6.40%-47.27%), brix % (4.04%-25.58%), sucrose % (6.96%-49.16%) and in purity % (3.04%-31.69%) was observed. Top Keywords Fusarium sacchari, Sugarcane, Wilt, Quantitative and qualitative attributes. Top |