Field Evaluation of Triple Combination of Copper, Chitosan and Trichoderma for Management of Late Blight Disease of Potato Under Hill Condition Sajeesh P K*, Bhardwaj Nitish Rattan, Balodi Rekha, Kumar J. Department of Plant Pathology, GBPUA&T, Pantnagar-263145, Uttarakhand, India *email: sajeeshnarayan17@gmail.com
Online published on 15 December, 2016. Abstract Late blight of potato caused by Phytophthora infestans is probably the most destructive plant disease. Under favourable environmental conditions the entire crop could be destroyed within a week after appearance of the disease. Disease management with copper-based fungicides still remains the largely and widely adopted practice but risks several components of agroecosystem. Therefore, an alternative approach that brings about reduction in the usage of copper and offer similar level of crop protection is the need. Further, such an approach could also be applicable to the management of other oomycete pathogens. Thus, the objective of this study was development of a triple combination of copper-based fungicide with chitosanbased plant strengthener and Trichoderma as a biocontrol agent to improve the performance of the copper-fungicide in spite of a concomitant reduction in its application rates. In the present investigation, chitosan (500 ppm) in combination with reduced dose of copper (500 ppm) and Trichoderma (1%) was used to manage this disease in field trials conducted under Ranichauri hill condition. All the treatments were used as seed and foliar applications. Among different treatments tested during 2014, minimum disease severity was observed with the standard fungicide mancozeb and was at par with triple combination but significantly different from CuOH and check at 116 days after planting. Field trials revealed that triple combination of chitosan (500 ppm), copper (500 ppm.) and copper tolerant Trichoderma (1%) was highly effective in managing late blight disease of potato. Top Keywords Field Evaluation, Triple Combination, Copper, Chitosan and Trichoderma, Late Blight Disease, Potato, Hill Condition. Top |