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The efficacy of a range of fungicides were assessed under in vitro conditions in four field trials over three seasons for the management of ray blight of pyrethrum, caused by the fungus Phoma ligulicola in Tasmania. Fungicides belonging to the demethylation inhibitor group, including prochloraz, tebuconazole, difenoconazole, and cyproconazole, produced the most significant reduction in mycelial growth in vitro compared with unamended controls. Significant reductions in germination of conidia resulted from low concentrations of azoxystrobin. In the field, azox-ystrobin (as Amistar) at a rate of 300 g of product/ha significantly decreased disease intensity and increased pyrethrin yield (kg/ha) in all seasons. Applications of either azoxystrobin or difenoconazole (as Score) at a rate of 250 ml of product/ha in early spring were the most effective, whereas no significant benefit was demonstrated from applications in autumn. Over all seasons, azoxystrobin applications resulted in double the weight of flowers produced compared with nontreated areas, whereas increases in pyrethrin content within the flowers were season and location specific. Application of azoxystrobin and chlorothalonil (as Bravo 720) at a rate of 1.4 liters of product/ha resulted in a 45 to 48% increase in flowers, reduced defoliation, and increased stem diameter. The weight of individual flowers and flower maturity was not significantly affected by fungicide application. These data provide the basis for cost-effective management of this disease.

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Pyrethrum (Tanacetum cinerariifolium) is commercially cultivated for the extraction of natural pyrethrin insecticides from the oil glands inside seed. Yield decline has caused significant yield losses in Tasmania during the last decade. A new pathogen of pyrethrum causing crown rot and reduced growth of the plants in yield decline affected fields of northern Tasmania was isolated from necrotic crown tissue and described as Paraphoma vinacea. Multigene phylogenetic identification of the pathogen also revealed that P. vinacea was a new species different from other Paraphoma type strains. Glasshouse pathogenicity experiments showed that P. vinacea significantly reduced belowground and total biomass of pyrethrum plants 2 months after inoculation. Dull-tan to reddish-brown discoloration of the cortical and subcortical crown tissue was observed in 100% of the infected plants. P. vinacea infected 75% of the plants inoculated with root dip and soil drench inoculation techniques in an inoculation optimization experiment. P. vinacea, the causal agent of Paraphoma crown rot disease, represents an important pathogen that will negatively impact the commercial cultivation of pyrethrum in Tasmania.

The incidence of Phoma ligulicola in Tasmanian pyrethrum seed and methods of managing seedborne mycoflora were determined. Fourteen different fungi were regularly isolated from seed, including Alternaria tenuissima, Stemphylium botryosum, and P. ligulicola, which have been documented as pathogens of pyrethrum. Comparisons between the incidence of these fungi from seed surface-sterilized with sodium hypochlorite and nontreated seed indicated they occurred both within and on the outside of the seed. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test for the detection of P. ligulicola was also developed, with a detection limit of 800 fg of fungal DNA. The assay detected infested seed lots down to an incidence of 0.5%. Reliable amplification of the target DNA was achieved with the addition of bovine serum albumin to reduce the influence of inhibitors from pyrethrum seed. Agar plate tests and PCR demonstrated variability with pyrethrum cultivars in the presence and viability of P. ligulicola in seed. Effective management strategies for the reduction of seedborne P. ligulicola included the regular use of fungicides for reducing foliar disease intensity in the seed fields prior to harvest. Seed treatments with fludioxonil and thiabendazole/thiram also significantly reduced the incidence of seedborne P. ligulicola and increased seed germination and seedling survival.