Fusarium is one of the most important genera of phytopathogenic fungi, causing potato wilt in the field and potato tuber dry rot during storage. The objectives of a study by researchers from Algeria and Poland were to identify Fusarium species associated with both potato diseases in different growing regions in Algeria, and to assess their pathogenicity.
Among the 152 isolates collected from symptomatic potato plants and tubers in different provinces in Algeria, 13 species of Fusarium and Neocosmospora were identified.
Fusarium sambucinum was the most frequent species (52.6% of isolates). Fusarium oxysporum and F. nygamai isolates were the most aggressive in the potato wilt pathogenicity test, and F. sambucinum isolates were the most aggressive in the potato tuber pathogenicity test.
This is the first study identifying and characterizing potato dry rot and potato wilt pathogens in Algeria.
Source: European Journal of Plant Pathology. Abstract and paper here
Photo: Fusarium dry rot. OMAFRA
