Cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.), a member of the cucurbitaceae family, is used for both fresh consumption and food processing. It has cooling properties, is eaten as salads and pickles, is a good source of vitamins and minerals, can treat conditions that resemble jaundice and is fragrant and crispy in texture. Vegetable crop production has increased to keep up with the population’s growing needs.
Elite genotypes with high gynoecy, yield, quality, and resistance to a variety of biotic and abiotic stressors are highly in demand. Traditional breeding was crucial to the advancement of cucumbers in earlier decades. Since cultivars must be carefully chosen for favorable qualities, conventional breeding advances rather slowly. However, researchers have used cutting-edge molecular and transgenic methods in cucumber breeding to quickly create new cultivars.
Steps for disease development:
Attachement of conidia
Penetration of host surface
Killing of host
Management:
Management of botrytis cineria on cucumber can be controlled by using fungicides treatments or essential oils. This experiment was done on 100 varieties of cucumber grown in a field. Hundred cucumber varieties were screened for one year i.e.2022-23 at a vegetable research institute, Ayub Agricultural Research Institute (AARI), Faisalabad to find out resistant germplasm against Botrytus cineria. All hybrids were purchased from different agro-based companies working in Pakistan. A raised nursery bed was prepared and sowing of cucumber varieties was done.
The nursery was critically inspected and only healthy disease-free cucumber seedlings were transplanted to the research area. 37 The field was well prepared with conventional farm machinery and evenly leveled after the removal of all stubbles of previous crops and weeds before the transplantation of the nursery. Varieties were sown in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications. Each test entry was planted in two rows 7 meters in length by keeping a 10-inch plant to plan and a 50-inch row-to-row distance. All agronomic practices were followed to raise and keep up a healthy crop.
A required amount of fertilizer was applied to the crop. The screening trials were adequately irrigated at the time of transplanting. The experimental field was kept weed-free by manual hoeing. Pathogens of Botrytis cinerea were allowed to damage the cucumber varieties under natural conditions because no fungicides were sprayed in the trial crop. Disease intensity was calculated by randomly selecting three plants of each variety. Data was recorded 50 days after transplanting at an interval of 5 days.
Establishment of disease Management Trial under field conditions:
This experiment done for screening the cucumber varieties was conducted at Vegetable Research Institute AARI, Faisalabad during the rabi season in 2022-23. The field was well prepared with all conventional farm machinery and evenly leveled after the removal of all the stubbles of previous crops and weeds. The cucumber variety was grown in the field with a randomized block design and three replications each. Cucumber plants were planted in rows with 7 meters in length by keeping the 10cm plant-to-plant and 30cm row-to-row distance. The crop was sown in RCBD with three replications in a plot size of 8×2 meters.
Agronomic practices were persuaded to raise and keep a crop healthy. A required number of fertilizers were applied to a crop during the present studies. The trial was adequately irrigated at the time of sowing followed by the irrigation as per the requirement and the experiment was kept weed-free by manual hoeing. Different types of fungicides used during my studies are Score, Nanok, Amistar Top, Antracal, Cabrio Top, Top Gourd, Revus, and Infinto. In cases of control, no fungicides will be applied.
Fungicides trial:
Dose formation and spraying on cucumber plants
In order to evaluate the different effects of fungicides, disease incidence, and disease severity will be recorded one day before spraying and seven days before spraying by using the Disease Rating scale. The data was recorded at regular intervals of seven days, fourteen days, and twenty-one days for disease incidence by using a formula.
Disease Incidence (%) = Infected plants/ total plants *100
Results:
Several control strategies are adopted to control botrytis cinerea on cucumber but the best among them is the utilization of resistant varieties/ hybrids. No doubt resistant varieties a naturally stable and suitable, and pose no environmental risk which ultimately reduces the application of hazardous fungicide application.
The development of resistant varieties using conventional methods requires a long time to incorporate the ideal characteristics to release resistant genotypes for ordinary farming. On the other hand, the search for resistant sources from available materials is a short-term strategy to identify resistant sources against botrysus cinerea of cucumber, and the spread of such hybrid is an easy economical, and practical approach. Therefore in the present study efforts arw directed to evaluate the available germplasm of onion in Pakistan under field conditions to select resistant varieties/advanced lines against botrytus cineria.
Different foliar diseases of the grey mold of cucumber are caused by botrytis cinerea and it is one of the major diseases, causing a yield loss of up to 80 percent in more susceptible cultivars of cucumber. Hence, the present investigation on the management of grey mold of cucumber was carried out in the field under natural conditions at VRI, AARI, Faisalabad. The field experiment was laid out to gather information on the efficacy of new chemistry fungicides, to explore their inhibitory activities, and to evaluate the most effective one to manage disease rate. The results thus obtained are as follows Fungicides showed significant variation regarding their action against grey mold.
Disease severity was measured each day after each spray. After 1st, 2nd 3rd and and 4th spray. After 1st and 2nd spray Top Gourd showed the most effective response among all fungicides with a disease severity of 20%, as the disease severity of Score is comparatively low and not more than 30% while the rest of the 6 fungicides showed maximum disease severity after 2nd spray, As we see the control the disease spread is quite high. After 3rd spray, TOP Gourd showed a strong inhibition effect against pathogens to control the disease with a disease severity of only 20%, Score (30%) was also found effective against grey mold disease, often treatments like Amistar Top(40%) showed better results for controlling disease bit less than above all fungicides as well.
Results of the rest of the treatments Cabrio Top (50%), Nanok(50%), and Antracal(50%) were not satisfactory in controlling the spread of grey mold diseases of cucumber.Revus(60%),Infinto(60%) were non infective.
The effectiveness of fungicides in the field of cucumber seed crops affected with grey mold disease is determined by a number of factors, including time, the concentration of effectiveness of different fungicides, temperature, and the availability of moisture on the leaves and surrounding areas, relative humidity, and application strategies.
In this experiment, the most effective fungicide to control the disease is TOP GOURD containing the active ingredient of flutriafol because after 4th day results the disease severity remained at only 20% of this treatment so further arguments supported that the active ingredients of this chemical prohibited the growth and spread of pathogens of Botrytis. cineria. TOP GOURD containing a flutriafol optimizes different modes of action giving a very broad disease and crop spectrum, especially against grey mold
disease. TOP GOURD is more effective than other fungicides against grey mold disease.
Conclusion:
In our experiment, we concluded that Top Gourd contains the active ingredient of flutriafol most effective against grey Mould disease because after the spray the disease severity remains at 20% and does not increase after the spray of Top Gourd. It suppressed the disease of grey Mould and enhanced the yield.
