DISEASES OF TURMERIC
Crop: Turmeric, Scientific Name: (Curcuma longa Lin.),
Family: Zingiberaceae
Dr P.Raja
Professor
Plant Pathology
College of Horticulture and Forestry
Pasighat 791 102, Arunachal Pradesh
India
Email: prajachf@gmail.com
DISEASES OF TURMERIC
1. Turmeric leaf spot : Colletotrichum capsici
2. Turmeric leaf blotch : Taphrina maculans
3. Rhizome rot: Pythium aphanidermatum
1. Turmeric leaf spot : Colletotrichum capsici
Symptoms
Elliptic or oblong spots on upper surface of leaf. Spots coalesce and form
irregular pathces and dries up.
The centre of spot is greyish white with numerous acervuli arranged in
concentric rings.
Leaves dry giving a scorched appearance.
Rhizome also affected, black stroma appears on the scales.
The spots are elliptic to oblong 4.53 cm with grayish white center, brown
margin and yellow halo spots coalesce and leaves dry.
Favourable conditions
August-September when there is high humidity.
Mode of spread and survival
Conidia are disseminated by wind and rain
Also carried over as dormant stromata between the
rhizome scales.
Management
1% Bordeaux mixture or 0.2% mancozeb in early
August before the appearance of the disease.
Select seed rhizomes from healthy areas, avoid
excess shade adopt mixed cropping.
Turmeric leaf blotch : Taphrina maculans
Symptoms
•The leaf spot appear in October-November on both the surfaces of the leaves.
•It first appears as apple yellow discolorations turn to dirty yellow and then
brown with a chlorotic halo.
•The lesions coalesce, forming large necrotic blotches; leaves ultimately dry.
Favourable conditions
80% RH and 21-23°C.
Mode of spread and survival
Soil debris
Management
Spray 1% Bordeaux mixture or 0.2% Copper oxychloride
Rhizome rot: Pythium aphanidermatum
Symptoms
•In infected plants, basal portion of the shoots appear watery and soft.
•The root system is very much reduced
•The leaves exhibit gradual drying along the margin
•Infected rhizomes soft, rotted, color changes into different shades of brown
•Favorable condition: High soil moisture
•MOS: Spreads through irrigation water
•Mode of survival: spreads through infected Rhizome
Management
•Use disease free planting material
•Providing good drainage facilities
•Rhizome dip in copper oxy chloride or zineb (0.3%) for 30 minutes before
planting
•Soil drenching with copper oxy chloride (0.25%) in and around affected plants
•Soil application of Pseudomonas fluorescens talc formulation (5 kg/ha)
