ARS | Publication request: Influence of Rhizoctonia-Bacterial root rot complex on storability of sugar beet

Submitted to: Phytopathology
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: May 20, 2011
Publication Date: June 14, 2011
Citation: Strausbaugh, C.A., Rearick, E., Eujayl, I.A., Foote, P. 2011. Influence of Rhizoctonia-Bacterial root rot complex on storability of sugar beet. Phytopathology. 101:S172.

Technical Abstract: The root rot complex, caused by Rhizoctonia solani and Leuconostoc mesenteroides, can lead to yield loss in the field but may also lead to problems with sucrose loss in storage. Thus, studies were conducted to investigate if placing sugar beet roots suffering from root rot together with healthy roots could compromise the ability of the healthy roots to retain sucrose. Over a 3-year period, root samples from three commercial cultivars were compared in storage as a healthy (eight healthy roots) or rotted (eight healthy roots + one rotted root) treatment inside an outdoor storage pile. The experiment was arranged as a split block (healthy in one-half of block and rotted in the other) with the whole blocks arranged in a RCBD with four reps. Samples were retrieved from storage in December, January, and February and evaluated for discolored and frozen root area, weight loss, and sucrose reduction and recovery. When comparing the healthy to the rotted treatment over the 9-year x sampling date combinations, the Wilcoxon signed-rank test indicated the median change for discoloration (7% increase), frozen area (14% increase), sucrose loss (5% loss), and recoverable sucrose (689 kg/ha less or 8% reduction) were significantly different from zero (P = 0.008, 0.031, 0.007, and 0.008, respectively). These data indicate that the root rot complex not only leads to yield loss in the field but can also negatively affect neighboring healthy roots in storage leading to additional sucrose losses.