Levantamento da intensidade da podridão-mole da alface e couve-chinesa nas regiões da Mata e Agreste do Estado de Pernambuco e determinação do tamanho das amostras para avaliação da incidência da doença

Abstract

Lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.) and Chinese cabbage (Brassica pekinnensis L.) may present yield reduction due to the occurrence of soft rot caused by Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum. Surveys of the intensity of soft rot in plantations of lettuce and Chinese cabbage were performed from January to May 2004 in mesoregions of the Zona da Mata and Agreste of the state of Pernambuco, Brazil. Disease prevalence of 45.2% was observed in lettuce and 100% in Chinese cabbage. The incidence of soft rot ranged from 0 to 22% in lettuce and 1 to 67% in Chinese cabbage. In lettuce higher intensity of soft rot was observed in areas: having more than 17 years of cultivation; planted with ‘Elba’, ‘Cacheada’ and ‘Tainá’; with clay soil type; irrigated by hosing and having poor drainage. Lower disease intensity was detected in areas: planted with ‘Verdinha’ and ‘Salad Bowl’; having coriander asprevious crop and when seedlings were produced in trays. In Chinese cabbage higher intensity of soft rot was found in areas having more than 10 years of cultivation, and in plantations with more than 50 days. The sole subspecies detected causing soft rot in all areas of lettuce and Chinese cabbage was Pectobacterium carotovorum subsp. carotovorum. To determine the ideal sample size for assessing incidence of soft rot in field, pilot-samples were conducted in eight lettuce planting areas and five Chinese cabbage planting areas, located in the main production municipalities in the state of Pernambuco. Based on our data and considering 20% of acceptable error, future surveys of the soft rot incidence should analyze 32 plots/ha and 20 plants/plot with 4.5m2 for lettuce and 21 plots/ha and 20 plants/plot with 10.5m2 for Chinese cabbage. For both crops there was significant correlation (P=0.05)between the intensity of disease aggregation and sample size but not between disease incidence levels and sample sizes