Fungi associated with rice seeds from Alto Vale do Itajaí, SC

Abstract

The occurrence of diseases in irrigated rice is an important constraint factor to the crop. Most of
the rice diseases are caused by seed-borne pathogens, which can be efficiently disseminated by seeds. The objective of this work was to identify and to quantify the main pathogenic fungi associated to rice seeds from Alto Vale do Itajaí, SC, Brazil. So, 59 rice seed samples were analyzed using the Blotter Test method with prior freezing of seeds. It was identified 16 genera of pathogenic and saprophitic fungi. Among these, Pyricularia grisea, the main
pathogenic fungus in rice, was detected in 26,6% of the cultivar Epagri 109 samples and in 14,3% of the cultivar SCS 112 samples. The average incidence of Pyricularia grisea per sample was 1,5% in the cultivar Epagri 109 and 1% in the cultivar SCS 112.