Pacific Pests, Pathogens and Weeds

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Summary

• Worldwide distribution. On sugarcane, maize and sorghum, crop relatives and wild species. Important fungal disease.
• Infections through nodes and wounds. Large red external patches, and internal rots with white spots at right angles to stem. Leaves yellow, dry and die.
• Spread in setts, and by water-splashed spores.
• Cultural control: setts only from healthy fields; avoid planting in dry or wet times; treat setts in hot water (50°C for 2 hours); avoid soils that waterlog; avoid overlapping crops; tolerant varieties; collect trash and burn after harvest.
• Chemical control: none recommended; not an economic option.