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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Fort Pierce, Florida » U.S. Horticultural Research Laboratory » Subtropical Plant Pathology Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #266709
Title: Anaerobic Soil Disinfestation for Suppressing Verticillium dahliae in Strawberry Production in California

Author
item SHENNAN, CAROL - University Of California
item MURAMOTO, JOJI - University Of California
item KOIKE, STEVE - University Of California - Cooperative Extension Service
item BOLDA, MARK - University Of California - Cooperative Extension Service
item DAUGOVISH, OLEG - University Of California - Cooperative Extension Service
item MOCHIZUKI, MAREN - University Of Florida
item Rosskopf, Erin
item Burelle, Nancy
item BUTLER, DAVID - University Of Tennessee

Submitted to: Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Science
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 10/11/2011
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary:

Technical Abstract: Anaerobic soil disinfestation (ASD), a non-chemical alternative to methyl bromide (MB) fumigation developed in Japan and the Netherlands, can control soilborne pathogens and nematodes in strawberries and vegetables. To optimize ASD for California strawberries, field experiments were conducted in Watsonville and Salinas in 2009-10, and are being repeated in Ventura, Watsonville and Castroville in 2010-11. Soil types in trials ranged from sandy loam to silty clay loam. Randomized complete block experiments with four replicates were established to compare ASD treatments with different carbon sources including; rice bran 10 Mg/ha (RB10), rice bran 20 Mg/ha (RB20), and rice bran 16 Mg/ha plus mustard seed cake 4 Mg/ha (RB+MC) with untreated checks (UTC), and MB or Pichlor 60 fumigation controls (except at the Ventura site). For ASD treatments, after roto-tilling carbon sources into the soil, beds were formed, and drip tape and plastic tarp applied as a part of the standard plasticulture practice. Then 7.5 to 12.5 cm of drip-irrigation was applied intermittently and left for three weeks, at which time holes were punched in the plastic and transplants planted ~7 days later. Native Verticillium dahliae populations in soil (0-15 cm) were quantified before and after treatments, and during the harvest period. During the ASD treatments, anaerobicity (Eh), temperature, and moisture content were continuously monitored at 15cm soil depth. Marketable fruit yield was evaluated. Soil Eh reduction near or exceeding 50,000 cumulative Eh mVhr below 200mV (a threshold for suppressing V. dahliae at 25 °C suggested by earlier pot experiments) was observed for most ASD plots across trials. ASD led to a 73 to 100% reduction in V. dahliae in soils compared to the UTC in Salinas, Ventura, and Castroville under moderately high V. dahliae pressure (11 to 15 microsclerotia/gram soil). Strawberry fruit yield in ASD plots in Salinas (2009-10) with moderate V. dahliae pressure was similar to MB and UTC. In Watsonville (2009-10) with 0 microsclerotia/gram soil, marketable yield was the highest in MB (100%), followed by RB+MC (85%), RB20 (82%), RB10 (76%), and UTC (75%). In the summer-planting Ventura trial (2010-11) with moderate disease pressure, early marketable yield in ASD plots was 80% greater than UTC (P=0.0015). Overall, ASD was very effective in suppressing V. dahliae in soils and resulted in 82 to 100% of the marketable fruit yield observed with fumigated controls in coastal CA strawberries. The combination of RB and MC in ASD appears particularly promising.