Biofumigation activity of selected cruciferous plants against Fusarium wilt of eggplant caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. melongenae under natural epiphytotic conditions

Abstract

Eggplant is the most traditional vegetable crop in India. Eggplant is susceptible to a number of diseases that reduce yield and quality, among which Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. melongenae (FOM) is one of the most important yield limiting factors in India. The present study was designed to evaluate the effectiveness of Brassica crops for the management of Fusarium wilt of eggplant. The evaluations were done in vitro and greenhouse conditions. In vivo study conducted from Kharif 2018-19 to 2019-20 at vegetable research scheeme, VNMKV, Parbhani. The pooled mean data from two years (Kharif 2018-19 and 2019-20) field studies showed that the biocidal volatiles released by Brassica tissue incorporation decreased the wilt incidence greatly from 14.57(Radish) to 50.88(Mustard) per cent reduction over control and significantly enhanced the Yield 43.13 (Radish) to 108.14 (Mustard) per cent increase over control and also enhanced the yield parameters viz., leaf area (10.16 to 55.95), plant height(13.02 to 35.85), root length(29.38 to 97.21) per cent increase over control respectively.