VIEW ARTICLE

Control of Fusarium Wilt of Mimosa with Benomyl and Thiabendazole. P. M. Phipps, Department of Plant Pathology and Physiology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg 24061, Present address of senior author: Department of Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, P.O. Box 5397, Raleigh 27607; R. J. Stipes, Department of Plant Pathology and Physiology, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg 24061. Phytopathology 65:504. DOI: 10.1094/Phyto-65-504.

Disease control in greenhouse-grown mimosa (Albizia julibrissin) seedlings was evaluated by applying root drenches of benomyl or thiabendazole at various time intervals, dosage levels, and frequencies before or after root dip spore suspension inoculation with the wilt fungus, Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. perniciosum. In all treatments, benomyl was more effective than thiabendazole in reducing symptom expression and fungous re-isolation. Only benomyl administered at the high level (500 µg/ml) either one week before or immediately after inoculation, and at the low level (100 µg/ml) at weekly intervals, resulted in disease prevention. Benomyl (500 µg/ml), applied at initial wilt symptoms, induced marked recovery. Thiabendazole treatments reduced disease development when applied before or immediately after inoculation. Phytotoxicity resulted after weekly and daily thiabendazole treatments, whereas benomyl was toxic after daily applications. Since both compounds failed to eradicate the parasite from inoculated roots, their practical implementation may be limited to periodic, preventive applications.