Parthenium Insight into its Menace and Management by M. Mahadevappa

Author:M. Mahadevappa [M. Mahadevappa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: STUDIUM PRESS, LLC

The use of obligate fungal pathogens, such as rusts and smuts, as classical biological control agents of invasive alien weeds has proven to be a highly successful management strategy with an exemplary safety record (Evans et al., 2001; Tomely and Evans, 2004; Barton, 2004). However, there are no short cuts and high scientific standards need to be maintained by biological control practitioners (FAO, 1996), if this exciting and still relatively novel approach to weed control is to gain more general acceptance. India has shown itself to be ready and able to embrace this “technology” in order to tackle its invasive weed problems with the recent release of P. svevazzinii against mikania weed. It is confidently predicted that this rust will prove to be the “silver bullet” for mikania control, as previously experienced with rubber-vine rust in Australia, where weed populations over a 40,000 sq km invasive range have been brought under control (Tomely and Evans, 2004) and with white smut of mistflower in Hawaii, New Zealand and South Africa (Evans et al., 2001; Evans, 2002).

Unfortunately, in the case of Parthenium in India, the conclusion is reached that this silver-bullet success will not be repeated and that a guild or suite of natural enemies including arthropods and fungi will have to be introduced, and employed in combination with cultural and chemical control. Management has to be viewed in the long-term, as there is no “quick-fix” solution to this hugely problematic and dangerous weed.

Progress of Efforts to Control Parthenium in Australia

In 1978, in Australia, the Commonwealth Institute of Biological Control was contacted by the Queensland Department of Lands to carry out a three years study on insects attacking Parthenium hysterophorus in Mexico. One of the insects from Mexico, a leaf-feeding chrysomelid - Zvaoaramma spp. Nr. Malvae Stal. was found to be host-specific. A second species, the seed-weevil, Snicrvnv lutulentus Dietz was also proved host specific in preliminary testing (McClay, 1980) and in December 1979, it was introduced in Queensland. The biological agents used successfully in Australia are as follows:

Table 17. Fungal pathogens associated with Parthenium

Pathogen Native range Exotic ranqe

Obliqate funqal pathogens

Bremia lactucas Dominican Republic, Mexico -

Entyloma compositaruiu Argentina, Dominican Repblic, -

(- E. parthenii) Mexico

Erysiphe cichoracearum Mexico India

Oid jum parthen ji - India

Plasmopara halstedii Dominican Republic, Mexico -

Puccinia abrupta var. Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, China, Ethiopia,

Partheniicola Central America, Mexico India, Kenya, Mauritius, South Africa

P. melampod jl Central America, Mexico -

Sphaerotheca fuliq jnea - India

Facultative funqal pathogens

Alternaria spp. - India

A. alternate - India

A. protenta Mexico India

Pathocren Native rancre Exotic ranqe

A. zinniae Mexico Sidia

Cezcospora partheniphlla Cuba, Mexico Sidia

Colletotridhum capsici - Sidia

C. aloeosporioides - Sidia

Crt/ptosporicpsis spp. - Sidia

Curvularia lunata - Sidia

Exserohilum rostratum - Sidia

Fusar jum spp. - Sidia

F. pallidoroseum - Sidia

Lasiodiplodla theohromae - Sidia

Mvrothecium roridum - Sidia

Phoma sorcfhina - Sidia

Rhizoctonia solarti - Sidia

Scleroinia sclerotlorum - Sidia

Sclerotitis rolfsll - Sidia

l ZWOqOTa, the leaf-defoliating beetle

l Listronotus, a stem-boring weevil

l Simcronvx, a seed-feeding weevil

l JniMsDS, a stem-galling moth

l Brcculatrix, a leaf-mining moth

l Qumecta, a root-boring moth

l ftacinia atatóa var. cartheiii la, the winter rust and Puccinia melampodii, the summer rust.

With the adoption of this technology, the weed could be brought under check.

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