ISSN: 0972-1045

Identification of virulent isolate of Fusarium oxysporum infesting tomato and exploring its disease severity in the presence of root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita

Journal of Applied Horticulture, 2024, 26(4): 455-460.

Identification of virulent isolate of Fusarium oxysporum infesting tomato and exploring its disease severity in the presence of root-knot nematode, Meloidogyne incognita

Sameena¹*, V. Bharathi², B. Vidya Sagar¹ andK. Sankari Meena³,

¹Department of Plant Pathology, Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University, Hyderabad, Telangana -500030, ²Department of Plant Pathology, Seed Research and Technology Centre, Hyderabad, Telangana-500030, ³Department of Nematology, ICAR- Indian Institute of Oilseeds Research, Hyderabad, Telangana-500030. Corresponding e-mail: sameenask30@gmail.com

DOI: https://doi.org/10.37855/jah.2024.v26i04.85

Key words: Disease complex, Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici, Meloidogyne incognita, tomato, Solanum lycopersici.

Abstract: The present study focused on identifying the native virulent Fusarium sp. associated with tomato (Solanum lycopersicon Mill) cv. ArkaVikas and to investigate its synergistic interaction with root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) in inducing wilt complex in tomato under pot culture conditions. The virulent isolate was identified as F. oxysporum f.sp. lycopersici through molecular characterization. TF-4 isolate was the most virulent strain among five tested isolates, exhibiting highest wilt incidence (85%) in tomato plants. Sequential inoculation of M. incognita followed by F. oxysporum exacerbated plant damage, with maximum wilt incidence recorded at 72.50%. It’s imperative to study the role of nematodes as a predisposing factor in increasing Fusarium wilt severity in tomato.