Protection methods

Fusarium wilt is a formidable disease that is difficult to control in the field. Only the implementation of a maximum of measures and methods recommended thereafter will make it possible to limit its effects.

• During cultivation

No control method, no product can effectively control this disease during cultivation.

It is essential to eliminate diseased plants as soon as the first symptoms appear.

The tools used for various interventions in the contaminated plots will be well cleaned before their use in healthy plots, without forgetting the wheels of the tractors. Thorough water rinsing of this material will often be sufficient to rid it of infested soil.

Many growers have the unfortunate habit of burying crop residues in the soil after harvest. The buried plant tissues are abundantly colonized by  this Fusarium   which produces numerous chlamydospores there. Eliminating plants with their root system limits this phenomenon and helps reduce the amount of inoculum in the plots.

• Next crop

It is necessary to use quality seeds , free from contamination (they could be treated with hot water for 15 minutes at 55 ° C); it will be the same for the substrate and the plants; producers will have an interest in checking the sanitary condition of the latter at the time of delivery. The plants produced should not come into contact with the soil, especially if the latter has not been disinfected. A plastic film should insulate them.
In infested farms, nurseries will be disinfected - the soil ( e-phy ) and shelter structures ( e-phy ) as well as the material and substrate used. The substrate should not be stored in bulk outside the greenhouses and it should especially not be mixed with earth or sand recovered in nature.

The crop rotations are generally effective because the fungus would remain badly in the soil. Rotations of 3 to 4 years are recommended.

The solarization would limit Fusarium, particularly when it is coupled to the input of organic material.

No melon variety is resistant to this Fusarium , and the rootstocks used appear susceptible.

* Chemical control : As the number of pesticides available for a given use is constantly changing, we advise you to always confirm your choice by consulting the e-phy site of the Ministry of Agriculture and Fisheries which is an online catalog of products phytopharmaceuticals and their uses, fertilizers and growing media approved in France. This also applies to all biological products based on microorganisms or natural substances.