Advances in Soil Borne Plant Diseases

This book aims to provide a comprehensive and up-to-date review of various aspects of soil-borne plant diseases, taking into account the current state of the art in soil-borne plant pathogens. It includes contributions from experts at various national laboratories, research institutes, and universities, who illustrate and review the progress and application of knowledge on soil-borne plant diseases. The book also covers recent paradigm shifts in the field, taking into account the interplay between ecology, epidemiology, disease resistance, physico-chemical and biological aspects of solarization, bio-control processes, molecular detection, genomics of bio-control, PGPR activity, and sustainable disease management. The book features chapters on major soil-borne fungal genera such as Rhizoctonia, Fusarium, Verticillium, Phytophthora, and Sclerotium, as well as endoparasitic nematodes like Heterodera and Meloidogyne, including their biology, perpetuation, and population dynamics. It also covers important crops like wheat, cotton, and temperate fruits. Additionally, the book discusses recent developments in bio-control, mass production, registration, quality control, principles of solar heating, use of mycorrhiza, utilization of on-farm wastes, and sub-lethal heating in hot arid regions. It also covers the philosophy of integrated disease management, taking into account ecological and economic parameters. This book is intended for students, teachers, researchers, policy-makers, extension workers, and all those interested in general plant pathology, microbiology, microbial ecology, biological control, molecular biology, and general biology, as well as farmers and their supporters.