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New post-harvest fungicide from Syngenta

Aug. 6, 2014, Canada – Syngenta Canada Inc. has introduced Stadium post-harvest fungicide for potatoes during storage. When used as part of a full-season, integrated disease prevention program, the company says Stadium is meant to help prevent the spread of two devastating storage diseases, silver scurf and Fusarium dry rot.

While storage diseases are not curable, pathogens can be controlled by limiting the spread of infection from diseased to healthy tubers. Stadium is powered by three active ingredients: fludioxonil (Group 12), azoxystrobin (Group 11) and difenoconazole (Group 3) for the control of Fusarium and suppression of silver scurf.

Fusarium (Fusarium spp.) is a seed- and soil-borne fungus that can spread rapidly in storage. Fusarium dry rot occurs in newly harvested tubers when they are wounded and come into contact with the fungus. The disease enters the tuber at the injury point and, if left untreated, can cause excessive rotting of the tuber tissue.

Silver scurf (Helminthosporium solani) is both seed- and soil-borne, with seed-borne silver scurf being more prevalent. Seed-borne silver scurf can spread in a manner similar to Fusarium – through contaminated soil, equipment and debris.

Appropriate storage conditions are an important part of disease management. In their absence, poor storage conditions can encourage disease to spread from infected to healthy tubers and tuber quality may be compromised due to skin blemishes and excessive shrinkage caused by water loss.

Maximum Residue Limits (MRLs) in potato products for export to a number of countries outside of North America have been established for the active ingredients in Stadium; however, they are not harmonized with North American levels. Prior to application, Syngenta advises growers to check with their potato buyer regarding Stadium use. It should also be noted that Stadium is not registered for use on seed potatoes.

For more information about Stadium post-harvest fungicide, please contact your local Syngenta representative or visit SyngentaFarm.ca. 

August 6, 2014  By Potatoes in Canada