Abstract

Carnations grown under protected cultivation were surveyed for Fusarium wilt caused by Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. dianthi in major carnation growing areas in Ooty, Coonoor and Kotagiri areas of the Nilgiris district in Tamil Nadu, India during 2011-12. The results indicated that the wilt incidence ranged from 19.66 to 44.46 per cent. During the survey, eight different isolates were brought into pure culture and confirmed for pathogenicity. Diversity analysis of F.o.f.sp. dianthi through RAPD analysis revealed three different groups. The pathogen was confirmed as F.o.f.sp. dianthi using specific primers through polymerised chain reaction (PCR) and through sequence analysis. The isolates FOD1, FOD3 and FOD4 were submitted to NCBI and assigned with accession numbers JX036529, JX036531 and JX036532.

Keywords: Carnation, Fusarium oxtysporum f.sp. dianthi, Pathogenicity, PCR, RAPD