Basal stem rot(Ganoderma boninense)

Symptoms

• The trees in the age group of 10-30 years are easily attacked by the pathogen.
• The most usual symptoms are yellowing, withering and drooping of the outer fronds which remain hanging around the trunk for several months before shedding
• The younger leaves remain green for sometime and later turn yellowish brown
• The new fronds produced become successively smaller and yellowish in color which do not unfold properly
• The wilting plants also show bleeding patches near the base of the trunk
• A brown gummy liquid oozes out from the cracks in the tree which slowly result in the death of outer tissues
• As the infection advances, fresh bleeding patches appear above upto 3-5 meters height on trunks
• The decay of the basal portion occurs slowly and tree succumbs to the diseases in 2-3 years
• The roots of wilting trees show discoloration and severe rotting

Management

• Plantation Sanitation: Removal and destruction of the dead and diseased palms in order to prevent the spread of the disease
• Isolation of diseased Palms: The palms in the early or middle stages of the disease should be isolated from the neighboring palms by taking trenches of 1 m deep and 30 cm wide
• Irrigate the palms at least once in a fortnight during summer months
• Biological control: Apply heavy doses of FYM or compost for green manure at 50 Kg/tree/year along with 5 kg of neem cake

Chemical Control

Extremely Toxic

Highly Toxic

Moderately Toxic

Slightly Toxic