Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface to the third edition
- Preface to the second edition
- Preface to the first edition
- Trademarks and registered trademarks
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Major crop diseases in the UK
- 3 Diagnosis of disease in crops
- 4 Eradication, Certification and Legislation
- 5 Crop husbandry and cultural practices
- 6 Production and use of crop cultivars resistant to disease
- 7 Fungicides and Biological Control
- 8 Current Trends and Future Prospects
- Bibliography and further reading
- Index
- Plate Section
5 - Crop husbandry and cultural practices
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 05 May 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface to the third edition
- Preface to the second edition
- Preface to the first edition
- Trademarks and registered trademarks
- 1 Introduction
- 2 Major crop diseases in the UK
- 3 Diagnosis of disease in crops
- 4 Eradication, Certification and Legislation
- 5 Crop husbandry and cultural practices
- 6 Production and use of crop cultivars resistant to disease
- 7 Fungicides and Biological Control
- 8 Current Trends and Future Prospects
- Bibliography and further reading
- Index
- Plate Section
Summary
Introduction
Techniques of crop husbandry, including alterations in cropping systems and manipulation of cultivation practices, may provide control of weeds and pests, as well as diseases. Reducing the survival and spread of soil-borne diseases has been a particular objective of such cultural practices. Manipulation of microclimate in crops under glass can help to reduce levels of disease, and especially of pathogens favoured by high humidity.
Cropping systems
One of the advantages of crop rotation is that pathogens specific to a particular crop may be starved out in the absence of their hosts. Inoculum of pathogens surviving on crop residues can be reduced by incorporation of these residues into the soil (Section 4.2). Degradation of residues by saprophytic microorganisms in the soil will deprive the pathogen of a food source. Unless the pathogen has a resistant spore or sclerotial stage, it may perish. Rotational systems of growing have, however, declined considerably in the UK over the past 30 years. Many growers of protected crops tend to specialise, growing one or two vegetable or soft fruit crops such as tomatoes, cucumber, lettuce or strawberry. Planting of consecutive cereal crops is now common practice in some parts of the UK, and some farmers have raised cereals on the same land for 10 years or more.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Control of Crop Diseases , pp. 66 - 75Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2012