Pathogenicity test of root rot disease (Macrophomina phaseolina (tassi) goid) of chickpea and detection of seed microflora of chickpea seeds in vitro

Chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) is one of the important pulse crops of India. Occurrence of root rot disease has become a major constraint in recent years for successful and profitable cultivation of chickpea. For accurate management of disease, required disease knowledge that how to damage andhow much damage to crop. The Pathogenicity of the fungus was evaluated through three inoculation methods viz. Seed cum soil inoculation, Soil inoculation and Seed inoculation. All these methods successfully produced dry root rot symptoms. Cent per cent plants showed rotting symptoms in seed cum soil inoculation and soil inoculation while in the seed inoculation method 80 per cent plant developed diseases symptoms. Seed microflora from a seed lot of chickpea were tested by moist blotter paper technique with and without surface sterilization for determining external as well as internal seed borne fungi associated with chickpea seeds. These were yielded Alternaria sp. (15.5%), Aspergillus niger (9%), Aspergillus flavus (11%), Fusarium sp.(8.5%), Macrophomina sp.(8%), Penicillium sp (6%). and Rhizopus sp (4%). in seed lots without surface sterilized seeds. In surface sterilized seed lots, Alternaria sp.(12.5%), Aspergillus niger (8.5), Aspergillus flavus (7.5), Fusarium sp.(4.5%), Macrophomina sp. (5%), Penicillium sp.(4.5) and Rhizopus sp.(7.00) were detected.