Diversity and Host Range of Powdery Mildew in Pandharpur Tehsil, District Solapur (M.S.)

Powdery mildew is a widespread fungal disease affecting diverse plant hosts in India, including crops and wild species. Powdery mildew appears on leaf surface of host plants, and under severe infection, induce morphological, anatomical and physiological alterations, leading to reduced yields of crop plants. Present investigation was undertaken to study host range of powdery mildew in Pandharpur tehsil of Maharashtra state. Field survey from different localities revealed diversity of powdery mildew caused by almost 12 genera and 82 species, infecting 76 host plants belonging to 33 families. Erysiphe was reported as most dominant genus (22 species) followed by Oidium (16), Golovinomyces, Podosphaera, Pseudoidium (9 each), Phyllactinia (7), Leveillula (3), Microidium, Microsphaera (2 each), Blumeria, Sphaerotheca, and Uncinula (1 each). Among the host plants, species from family Fabaceae showed highest incidence of powdery mildew (21 species), followed by Asteraceae (9), Malvaceae (4), and Euphorbiaceae (3).