Management of quiescent pathogens rots of mango with preharvest spraying of true fungicides and salicylic acid

Abstract

The shelf life of mango ‘the king of fruit’ is found to be affected by several biotic and abiotic stresses as well as their various combinations. However, pathogenic infections in latent and quiescent state reduce commercial values by aggravating the dynamics of rotting and reduction in quality. Mango is succumbed to infection by several pathogens both before and after harvest. Colletotrichum state of Glomerella cingulata and Lasiodiplodia theobromae are important quiescent postharvest pathogens of mango and both of these survive within old foliages despite the prevailing high summer temperature above 35oC, chilling winter below 10 oC and heavy rains approx. 1100mm during monsoon months. A single preharvest foliar spray at 85 days before harvest with two fungicides namely Dithane M-45 (0.25%) and Bavistin (0.15%) followed by a single spray of Salicylic acid (0.5 – 2.0mM) before 30 days of harvest on young immature fruits was carried out to evaluate the efficacy of different treatments. The present finding suggests that both Dithane M-45 (0.25%) or Bavistin (0.15%) followed by Salicylic acid (2.0mM) are equally effective treatments with disease reduction of 66.67% over control for a storage period of 15 days at ambient room temperature.