Potato cultivation can be a profitable enterprise when a few basic precautions are taken.

1
Introduction

• Potato cultivation can be a profitable enterprise
  when a few basic precautions are taken.
• Selection of healthy and disease free planting
  material is an important step to avoid diseases
  in potato nursery. Certified seeds must be used
  as planting material.
• Diseases such as bacterial wilt, fungal wilt,
  powdery mildew, early blight, etc are common
  diseases found in potato nursery.

2
Bacterial Wilt

• Symptoms Initial wilting of leaves accompanied
  by mild yellowing may affect only one side of the
  leaf. Later severe wilting, browning, desiccation
  of leaves and death of seedling occur. Vascular
  strands darken and grayish white slime exudes in
  cross section. Wilt disease develops rapidly at
  high temperatures.
• Control Crop rotation with cereals and legumes,
  use of disease free seeds, crop sanitation, tuber
  dipping with 0.5 Aretan or Agallol suspension
  for ten minutes and soil treatment with Brassicol
  _at_ 20-30 kg/ha manage the disease at low level. A
  combination of seed and soil treatment gives the
  best control of diseases in potato.

3
Powdery Mildew of Potato

• Symptoms Initially, infected leaves or stem
  exhibits whitish spore masses resembling like
  soil residues, dust or spray deposits.
• Management In severe infection, spraying of
  sulfur formulations at 15 days interval through
  three sprays of fungicides like 0.2 Wettable
  Sulfur, 0.1 Tridemorph or 0.1 Dinocap is
  recommended.

Infection of Powdery Mildew on Potato Leaf
Infection of Powdery Mildew on Potato Leaf
4
Verticillium Wilt of Potato

• Symptoms Disease occurs in tropical, subtropical
  climatic regions. Yellowing of basal leaves
  follows wilting of plant. Vascular system of
  lower stem turns brown. Disease causing fungi
  survives in soil, plant debris and on host
  plants.
• Management Follow Crop rotations with legumes,
  use disease resistant varieties, timely
  irrigation and foliar application of Benlate
  (0.1) is effective.

Unilateral Leaf Necrosis And Wilt in Potato
 Vascular Discoloration of Potato Stem (Top)
Non-affected Stem (Bottom).
5
Potato Leaf Roll Virus (PLRV)

• Symptoms Disease is transmitted by aphids. Upper
  leaves roll towards base, rolls are stiff,
  leathery and under side becomes tinged purple.
  Plants are stunted and erect. Upper leaves are
  pale. Crop yield losses may reach up to 90.

Infected Potato Plant by PLRV
Management Select healthy plants from nursery,
eliminate diseased plants through rouging.
Spraying systemic insecticides decrease vector
(aphid) infestation and disease spread. PLRV can
be effectively eliminated from tubers by heat
treatment.
6
Potato Viruses Y and A (PVY and PVA)

• Symptoms These viruses are transmitted through
  aphids. bunching, twisting of leaves, downward
  turning of leaflet margins, stunting, necrosis of
  veins, necrotic spotting, leaf necrosis and stem
  streaks are typical symptoms. The yield reduces
  up to 80.
• Management PVY and PVA diseases are controlled
  by elimination of aphid infestation, clonal
  selection of seedlings, rouging of diseased
  seedlings, use of resistant cultivars.

PVA Infected Leaf of Potato
PVY Infected Leaf of Potato
7
Cyst Nematodes

• Symptoms Stunting, yellowing and early maturing
  of leaves. White/yellow spherical female nematode
  (0.5-1.0 mm diameter) seen on potato roots. They
  turn into brown cysts containing eggs persisting
  for several years. Cysts are carried by soil
  sticking to tubers, farm machinery, tools and
  containers.
• Management Use of nematode Resistant varieties,
  long crop rotation, high doses of organic matter.
  Use of Nematicides and soil fumigants.

Cyst Nematodes on Potato Roots
Symptoms on Potato Leaves