Bacterial wilt (Ralstonia solanacearum)

Symptoms

• Water soaked spots appear on collar region of pseudostem.
• Mild drooping & curling of leaf margins of the lower leaves.
• Yellowing starts from lowermost leaves to upper leaves.
• In advanced stage, plants shows wilting.
• Affected pseudostem & rhizome extrudes milky ooze from vascular strands.

Management

• Soil solarisation for 60 days during summer
• Planting of disease-free seed rhizomes.
• Use crop rotation with non-host crops like ragi, paddy, maize, sorghum etc.
• Avoid crop rotation with tomato, potato, chillies, brinjal and peanut, as these plants are hosts for the wilt pathogen Ralstonia solanacearum.
• Rhizome treatment with hot water 47^oC for 30 minutes.
• Use bio-fumigation using cabbage and mustard plant refuses.
• Inoculation with native Psuedomonas fluroscens(20 g/litre of water)
• The seed rhizomes may be treated with Streptocycline (0.5 gram/litre of water) for 30 minutes and shade dried before planting.