DOI: 10.36347/sajb.2014.v02i04.002

Pages: 251-254

Sclerotinia rot caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) de Bary was recorded on ridge gourd (Luffa acutangula (L.) Roxb.) and pointed gourd (Trichosanthes dioica Roxb.) in Birbhum district of West Bengal. The pathogen infects internode and node of the vine stem causing wilting and drying of the vine above the point of infection. Prominent mycelial growth was found on the infected fruits and the fruits underwent rotting. On the rotted fruits abundant small to large, elliptical, circular and irregular sclerotia were formed. This disease is new record for Luffa acutangula and Trichosanthes dioica in West Bengal and T. dioica is new addition to the host range of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum. The isolate of this pathogen did not have host specificity.