Management of soil borne fungi on coffee

Abstract

Soil borne fungi can be very importan on coffee plantations and in the nursery. One of the key measure to get vigorous plants in the field is the quality of the seedling and the site of planting. The great majority of the diseases on seedlings came from the nursery. Another source of pathogens is to plant in soil that has suffered clearing of forests. The soil's organic matter contains soil pathogens that attack coffee seedlings after planting. Sometimes plants can die. The main soil borne disease of coffee are: Rhizoctoniosis, Rosellinia root rot, Ceratocystis canker stain and Coffee Wilt Disease. For these reasons the main measures of integrated control is exclusion of the pathogen and avoidance. Introduction Rhizoctoniosis is a serious disease in nurseries and seedlings, causing damping-off in pre and post emergence. The disease is caused by the fungus Rhizoctonia solani. Seedlings in the field, in a permanent planting area, can be attacked about a year after planting, which determines a great delay or death in relation to the normal development of the healthy plant. The disease is of great economic importance, causing damage to coffee seedlings, planting failures or weak seedling production. The disease can attack coffee plants in the field for up to a year after planting, especially when the coffee plantation is done in areas of devastated forest (Zambolim et al.