Canada: FIP fund trials to control Xanthomonas bacterial spot

With $15,000 in funding from the Farm Innovation Program (FIP), the Fresh Vegetable Growers of Ontario conducted field trials to evaluate the efficiency of fungicides and bactericides in controlling bacterial spot, caused by Xanthomonas gardneri, a very aggressive bacterium on tomatoes and peppers.

Plants were artificially inoculated after fungicide and bactericide applications, and disease assessments were carried out weekly. Despite two inoculations with bacterial spot, disease pressure throughout the season was low. Bacterial infection was higher on tomato compared to the two pepper cultivars tested. Among the pepper cultivars evaluated, bacterial spot was more severe on bell pepper plants and on fruit of sweet banana peppers. Performance of the fungicides and bactericides evaluated on bell and banana peppers and on tomato was similar, with KOCIDE, KASUMIN and ACTIGARD slightly reducing bacterial spot progress and fruit infection and slightly increasing total and marketable yields.

This project was funded in part through Growing Forward, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative. The Agricultural Adaptation Council assists in the delivery of several Growing Forward programs in Ontario.