Symptoms
A soft, wet, foul-smelling rot of the corm in the field or in storage, with yellowing and wilting of the foliage above. Cut corms show a watery brown breakdown of the flesh.
Prevention
Plant on well-drained, raised beds and avoid waterlogging; harvest in dry conditions and cure corms well before storage. Use clean planting material and avoid bruising at harvest.
Treatment
Organic
Discard rotted corms and drench planting holes with Trichoderma. Improve drainage and store only sound, undamaged corms in a dry, ventilated space.
Chemical (last resort)
Dip seed corms in mancozeb plus metalaxyl before planting and drench affected soil at first symptoms. Drainage correction is essential — observe PHI.
Affects 1 crop
Sources
MARDI Taro Production Guide; DOA IPM Manual