Diseases

Sclerotinia Wilt of Sunflower

Helianthus annuus L.

A fungal disease of sunflower caused by the pathogen Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, manifesting in root, basal, stem, and head rot forms, leading to tissue decay and crop destruction.

In the reference 549 varieties crop Sunflower, where this is mentioned in the description.

The causative agent of the disease is the ascomycete fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, which forms sclerotia that remain viable in the soil for 8–12 years. The pathogen does not have a widely accepted system of races; however, its populations are heterogeneous in terms of aggressiveness and morphological traits.

The disease manifests in four forms: root rot, which causes seedling death; basal rot, leading to plant wilting during the vegetative phase; stem rot, accompanied by tissue shredding; and the most damaging head rot, in which mycelium infects the flower heads and seeds.

There are no sunflower varieties completely immune to white rot. Plant resistance is a polygenic trait, therefore, in breeding, it is not the presence of specific genes that is evaluated, but the level of hybrid tolerance, expressed in points.

General information about the subject — on the page White mold.

Sources8

Varieties of Sunflower mentioned in the description

Selection based on the description text, not on official evaluation: these data are absent from registers. For specific variety details, please refer to its profile.