Management of Garlic Rust (Puccinia allii) Through Fungicide at Bale Highlands, South Eastern Ethiopia

Abstract

Garlic (Allium sativum L.) is one of the most important crops in worldwide. Despite its importance, production and productivity of this particular crop is highly constrained by several biotic and abiotic factors among which fungal diseases are very devastating. Garlic rust which is caused by Puccinia allii is the most common and economically important fungal disease. Field experiments were conducted with the objective to study the effects of natura spray at rates of 0.25, 0.5, and 0.75 L/ha and frequencies of application (at 7, 14, 21, 28- day and no spray) on the spatial epidemics of garlic rust. The experiments were conducted in the main cropping seasons (August–December) in 2017 at Madda Walabu University Research Site (MWURS) and Sinana Agricultural Research Center (SARC) in Bale highlands, Ethiopia. Percentage severity index (PSI), disease progress rate (DPR) and area under disease progress curve (AUDPC) were used to evaluate the effects of the treatments. The final levels of disease severity were about 89.9% at MWURS and 87.2% at SARC on unsprayed plots.The disease developed at a rate of -0.011 units per day at weekly interval when 0.75L/ha natura sprayed and 0.075 units per day under natural disease epidemics at MWURS. Marketable yield harvested from sprayed plots was consistently greater than the yield harvested from unsprayed plots. Since the study was conducted for one season at two locations, similar study need to be conducted at different locations with similar agro-ecologies and more number of seasons.

Keywords: Allium sativum; Disease progress rate; Fungicide; Puccinia allii; Bale highlands, AUDPC