Integrated Disease Managements of Sunflower Alternaria blight (Alternaria helianthi)

Leaf blight caused by Alternaria helianthi (Hansf). Tubaki and Nishihara is one of the major constraints in the profitable cultivation of sunflower. The disease has been found to cause 30 to 80 per cent losses in seed yield and 17 to 33 per cent reduction in oil content. The field experiments were conducted on the Research farm, Oilseed Research Station, Latur during Kharif, 2010, to evaluate the efficacy of the Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Krishi Vidyapeeth, those fungicides, botanicals and bioagents which were found most effective against A. helianthi, during in vitro studies selected in combination viz., Seed treatment with Mancozeb + Carbendazim 75 WP (ST), Mancozeb + Carbendazim 75 WP (ST) + its spray (@0.2%), Mancozeb + Carbendazim 75 WP (ST) + Chlorothalonil 75 WP (Kavach) (@ 0.2%) spray, Mancozeb + Carbendazim 75 WP (ST) + Copperoxy chloride 50 WP (Blitox) (@ 0.25%) spray, Seed treatment with Trichoderma viride (5 gm/kg), Sprays with Tulsi leaves extract (@ 10%), Sprays with garlicbulb extract (@ 5%). However, seed treatment with SAAF (0.3%) + two sprays of Mancozeb 63% + Carbendazim 12% @ 0.2%, recorded significantly least Alternaria leaf blight severity (8.13%), with highest seed yield (1406 kg/ha) and highest B:C ratio (3.84), followed by SAAF seed treatment (0.3%) + two spraying of Chlorotalonil (0.2%), which recorded (10.22%) disease severity, seed yield (1276 kg/ha) and B: C ratio (3.49) and SAAF seed treatment + sprays Copper oxychloride (0.25%), which recorded (12.13%) disease severity, seed yield (1182 kg/ha) and B: C ratio (3.04). Whereas, maximum disease severity was observed on seed treatment of Trichoderma viride (26.63%) with lowest seed yield and B:C ratio (660 kg/ha and 2.05).