ABSTRACT
Ginger is an herbaceous plant and many pests and diseases affect this crop (Dohroo and Edison, 1989; Dohroo, 1997). Of these, rhizome rot, bacterial wilt, yellows, Phyllosticta leaf spot, and storage rots are major diseases that cause economic losses (Nadda et al., 1996). In Kerala, bacterial wilt and rhizome rot are prevalent in all major ginger-growing areas (Dake, 1995). Thirty-nine microorganisms have been reported to be associated with ginger in the field or storage including two nematode species (Meloidogyne incognita and Pratylenchus coffeae) and one wilt bacterium. Pythium aphanidermatum, Fusarium oxysporum, Ralstonia solanacearum and Pratylenchus coffeae are potent pathogens causing soft rot, yellows, bacterial wilt, and dry rot, respectively, in the field or in storage (Srivastava et al., 1998).
