Cotton diseases and their management

Abstract

Cotton industry is an important sector of the economy in all agriculturebased countries. Nevertheless, cotton production is constantly endangered by pathogens that cause considerable economic losses. Worldwide, numerous different diseases have been identified in cotton. Fusarium and Verticillium wilt, Alternaria leaf spot and seedling diseases, boll rot, leaf curl disease, and bacterial blight are the major constraints to the cotton fiber production. Maintaining the disease incidence at low level is the ultimate preference of the researchers. Understanding the etiology is the main factor to estimate the economic impact of diseases, which eventually helps to develop the management strategies. Presently, cotton leaf curl has emerged as main risk to all cotton-growing areas because of the changes in viral disease complex. In this chapter, brief history of the major diseases, the host-pathogen interactions, the taxonomy of the recognized causal agents, and different control strategies applicable to each disease including some rising techniques such as genome modification for enhanced resistance are discussed.