Wilt of Pointed Gourd Caused by Fusarium sp. and its Management

Fusarium wilt is one of the major destroyer diseases. Wilts are a major threat for agriculture. Looking to the importance of this disease and losses caused every year in South Gujarat, this problem is selected. Wilt of pointed gourd is a serious fungal disease caused by Fusarium solani. The control of fungal diseases is mainly based on chemical control. However, any use of chemical pesticides is not advisable for the diseases transmitted by the soil due to their high cost and low efficiency. Here, the necessary information for suitable management measure to reduce crop losses increase production of pointed gourd and analysis on following objectives:1. Symptomatology, isolation, purification, identification and proving pathogenicity of the wilt inducing fungus.2. Evaluation of different phyto extracts against Fusarium solani in vitro.3. Evaluation of different fungicides against Fusarium solani in vitro.4. Bio-efficacy of different biocontrol agents (BCA) against Fusarium solani in vitro.5. Evaluation of most efficient fungicides and biocontrol agents under pot condition.