POST HARVEST DETERIORATION OF POTATO AND ITS CAUSES IN COLD STORAGE OF MUNSHIGONJ

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to observe the prevalence of different diseases of potato in selected cold storages of Munshiganj and to identify the causal agent that causes potato deterioration at cold storages. The survey was conducted at different cold storages of Munshiganj and In-vitro experiments were conducted in the MS Laboratory of Department of Plant Pathology, Sher-e-Bangla Agricultural University, during the period of July 2016 to May 2017. Potato samples were collected randomly from different cold storages and 200 potatoes were tested to identify the causal organisms. The study showed that the prevalence of the diseases were Dry rot (3.66%), Brown rot (3.21%), Common scab (5.38%), Soft rot (4.82%) and the prevalence of physiological disorder (5.17%). Five causal organisms were identified namely Ralstonia solanacearum, Pectobacterium, Pseudomonas sp, Streptomyces scabies and Fusarium spp. Bacteria were identified by growing them on selective and semi selective media and conducting different biochemical tests viz. KOH solubility, Gram’s staining, Catalase, Oxidase, Levan production, Gelatin liquefaction, Starch hydrolysis, Potato soft rotting and motility test.