Occurrence of Fusarium proliferatum and Fusarium oxysporum in garlic throughout the crop cycle and in surrounding potential reservoirs
Abstract
Fusarium dry rot (FDR) is a major threat to garlic in all production areas. In France, Fusarium proliferatum (Fp) and F. oxysporum (Fox) are the primary pathogens responsible for symptoms appearing during bulbs storage. A better understanding of the mechanism underlying the disease development could help in developing strategies for managing FDR. This study evaluates the occurrence of Fp and Fox in garlic tissues throughout the crop cycle and the impact of alternative treatments on their prevalence. Additionally, environmental reservoirs – including air, rainwater, soil, and crops grown in rotation with garlic – were surveyed to determine their potential as inoculum sources. The presence of Fp and Fox in garlic and in environmental samples was assessed using three detection methods: microbial isolations, loop-mediated isothermal amplification, and droplet digital PCR. Glasshouse and field trials demonstrated that Fp and Fox remain present in garlic tissues throughout the crop cycle. Although newly formed tissues showed no symptoms, at least 70% of new bulbs and 89% of bulbils harboured these fungi at harvest. After two months of storage, over 85% of asymptomatic cloves tested positive for Fp. These results confirm the ability of Fp and Fox to live as endophytes in garlic. Furthermore, the treatments tested (biocontrol and UV-C) had no significant impact on the presence of the fungi or on post-harvest symptoms. Fp was infrequently detected in the air, rainwater, soil, and crops grown in rotation with garlic, indicating that these are not the primary sources of inoculum; rather, garlic cloves are the major source.
Related
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BibTeX
@misc{leyronas2026occurrence,
title = {{Occurrence of Fusarium proliferatum and Fusarium oxysporum in garlic throughout the crop cycle and in surrounding potential reservoirs}},
author = {Christel Leyronas and Véronique Edel-Hermann and Caroline Guilbaud and Marc Bardin and Thomas Oudin and Alexandra Berthelemy},
howpublished = {HAL},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
url = {https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-05725262v1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Occurrence of Fusarium proliferatum and Fusarium oxysporum in garlic throughout the crop cycle and in surrounding potential reservoirs
AU - Christel Leyronas
AU - Véronique Edel-Hermann
AU - Caroline Guilbaud
AU - Marc Bardin
AU - Thomas Oudin
AU - Alexandra Berthelemy
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/24
PB - HAL
UR - https://hal.inrae.fr/hal-05725262v1
AB - Fusarium dry rot (FDR) is a major threat to garlic in all production areas. In France, Fusarium proliferatum (Fp) and F. oxysporum (Fox) are the primary pathogens responsible for symptoms appearing during bulbs storage. A better understanding of the mechanism underlying the disease development could help in developing strategies for managing FDR. This study evaluates the occurrence of Fp and Fox in garlic tissues throughout the crop cycle and the impact of alternative treatments on their prevalence. Additionally, environmental reservoirs – including air, rainwater, soil, and crops grown in rotation with garlic – were surveyed to determine their potential as inoculum sources. The presence of Fp and Fox in garlic and in environmental samples was assessed using three detection methods: microbial isolations, loop-mediated isothermal amplification, and droplet digital PCR. Glasshouse and field trials demonstrated that Fp and Fox remain present in garlic tissues throughout the crop cycle. Although newly formed tissues showed no symptoms, at least 70% of new bulbs and 89% of bulbils harboured these fungi at harvest. After two months of storage, over 85% of asymptomatic cloves tested positive for Fp. These results confirm the ability of Fp and Fox to live as endophytes in garlic. Furthermore, the treatments tested (biocontrol and UV-C) had no significant impact on the presence of the fungi or on post-harvest symptoms. Fp was infrequently detected in the air, rainwater, soil, and crops grown in rotation with garlic, indicating that these are not the primary sources of inoculum; rather, garlic cloves are the major source.
ER -