ARTICLES

Effect of Soil pH on Sclerotial Germination and Pathogenicity of Sclerotium rolfsii¹

Authors: ,

Abstract

The effect of soil pH on sclerotial germination and pathogenicity of two isolates of Sclerotium rolfsii on peanut was examined. Sclerotial germination for both isolates was greater (P ≤ 0.05) in acidic soil than at alkaline pHs. Similarly, percentage of peanut stems infected by S. rolfsii in greenhouse tests was greater at soil pH 5.6 than at alkaline soil pHs (P ≤ 0.05), but disease did develop at soil pH 8.7 and 9.8. In contrast to a previous in vitro study, these data confirm that sclerotia of S. rolfsii will germinate and initiate disease at soil pH > 7.0.

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Keywords: Arachis hypogaea, Groundnut, peanut, stem rot, sclerotia

How to Cite: Shim, M. & Starr, J. (1997) “Effect of Soil pH on Sclerotial Germination and Pathogenicity of Sclerotium rolfsii¹”, Peanut Science. 24(1). doi: https://doi.org/10.3146/i0095-3679-24-1-5

Author Notes

1 This study was partial fulfillment of the requirements for the first author's Ph.D. degree. Supported by the Texas Peanut Producers Board and USDA IPM grant no. 92-34103-6937.