Prevalence Of Basal Stem Rot Disease Caused by Ganoderma Sp. On Oil Palm (Elaeis Guineensis Jacq) In Ghana

Emmanuellah  Lekete-Lawson; Enoch  Adjei Osekre; Grace   van der Puije; Felix  Swanzy; Hanif  Lutuf; Joshua  Obeng; William  Opare Danso; Daniel  Agyei-Dwarko

doi:10.4314/just.v1i1.1793

Ms. Emmanuellah Lekete-Lawson CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute
Prof. Enoch Adjei Osekre Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9443-7160
Prof. Grace van der Puije University of Cape Coast
Mr. Felix Swanzy Oil Palm Research Institute
Mr. Hanif Lutuf CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3869-5325
Mr. Joshua Obeng CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4074-1386
Mr. William Opare Danso Oil Palm Research Institute
Mr. Daniel Agyei-Dwarko CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute

DOI: https://doi.org/10.4314/just.v1i1.1793

Keywords: Ganoderma infection, Elaeis guineensis, Basidiocarps, Disease prevalence

Abstract

Oil palm (Elaeis guineensis Jacq.) is the most productive and highest yielding edible oil crop in the world, being 13 times more productive than soybean and other oil-bearing seeds. In 020/2021, a survey was conducted to assess incidence and severity of Ganoderma Basal Stem Rot (BSR) disease on selected palm trees in Central, Eastern, and Western regions of Ghana. A follow-up survey was conducted in 2022 to determine the current prevalence of the infection. A Ganoderma disease census was done based on the single-point assessment following the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP), with disease severity scale of 0-4 based on number of Basidiocarps per infected plant. A total of 7,500 palm trees from fifteen plantations were assessed. The number of fruiting bodies/basidiocarps per plant ranged from 2 to 291. Out of 15 plantations, 73% showed Ganoderma infection. Current study showed eight infected palms identified in Western region against two palms in 2020/2021. In Central region, one of the heavily infected palms identified on plot (B37-1) in 2021, was completely destroyed by the pathogen. Eastern region showed maximum presence of inoculum loads of Ganoderma pathogen with total number of 52 infected palms. Although, the disease incidence per selected plantations was low, (<10 %), the rate at which the disease was spreading and the ability of the fungus to attack younger palms 11 years, was of real concern. The study revealed increased disease incidence and severity, there is therefore the need for urgent management and constant monitoring for early detection and prevention.

Author Biographies

Ms. Emmanuellah Lekete-Lawson, CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute

Emmanuellah Lekete is a renowned Pathologist with expertise in plant disease diagnosis, plant disease management, mycology, fungal genetics, molecular biology, Bacteriology, Entomopathogen, Statistics, and Research methodology. She holds BSc. in Agric. Economics and an M.Phil in Crop Protection-Plant Pathology-option in Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. She is currently pursuing her Ph.D. program in Plant Pathology-Molecular plant pathology –option in Auburn University, Alabama, USA. She was a scholar under Borlaug Higher Education for Agriculture Research and Development (BHEARD). She carried out certain aspects of her M.Phil. research work at Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana, Akyem Tafo in the Eastern region. She served as a Chairperson in both local and international conferences including the 4th International Conference and Workshop for Women in Science without Borders in Brazil.
She served as both Service Personal and French teacher during her national service at the Cocoa Research Institute of Ghana in 2009. She was a Research Assistant in charge of Mycorrhiza extraction at CSIR-Forestry Research Institute of Ghana under the Carbon Usage Efficiency Project (CUE-GEOCARBON) an European FP7 project. Emmanuellah joined the CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute in 2016 and immediately started running the Institute’s Pathology laboratory. Over the years, she has worked on numerous diseases both on oil palm and coconut which are mandatory crops of CSIR-OPRI. Her research includes the use of principles of disease diagnosis techniques in diagnosing variant plant diseases and in producing disease-free planting materials for the institute. She also researched into Plant Biofungicides extractions, New pathogens and disease reports, use of integrated disease management (IDM) techniques to manage plant diseases both under in vitro and in vivo conditions, use of molecular tools for early disease detection and prevention, molecular assisted techniques to facilitate disease screening and breeding of resistant varieties using transcriptomics and metabolomics, as well as the application of Genetic Engineering technology to improve plant disease management.

Prof. Enoch Adjei Osekre, Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology

Prof. Enoch A. Osekre is a Professor of Entomology with the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences of Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi, Ghana. He holds a PhD from the University of Florida, USA. He is currently the Dean of the Faculty of Agriculture of the University. His broad research interests are Integrated Pest Management and Host Plant-Insect Interaction with focus on population dynamics of insect pests and their application to development of integrated pest management strategies for both field and storage insect pests of vegetables, legumes and cereals. His extension activities have focused on reduction of post-harvest losses and education on safe handling and use of pesticides. He has participated in many scientific conferences and has several journal articles on mitigation of post-harvest losses.

Prof. Grace van der Puije, University of Cape Coast

Prof. Grace van der Puije is a Senior lecturer and current Head of the Department of Crop Science, University of Cape Coast. She holds a Ph.D. from the University of Reading, U.K. with emphasis on Plant Pathology; M.Phil. in Crop Science with specialization in Plant Protection, B.Sc. (Hons.) Agriculture and Diploma in Education, all from the University of Cape Coast, Ghana. She is a native of Atuabo in the Western region.

Mr. Felix Swanzy, Oil Palm Research Institute

Mr. Swanzy is a senior research scientist (Agric. Extension and Rural Sociologist) and Head of Commerce & Information Division at CSIR- Oil Palm Research Institute, Kade, located in Eastern Region.

Mr. Hanif Lutuf, CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute

Hanif Lutuf is a Plant Pathologist at the CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute (CSIR-OPRI) in Ghana. He specializes in Integrated Pests and Diseases Management, Plant Nematology, and Plant Mycology. Hanif holds a BSc in Agriculture from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) and an MPhil in Crop Science (Plant Pathology) from the University of Ghana (UG), with his research sponsored by the A. G. Leventis Foundation. He has published over 20 research papers in reputable scientific journals and is an active member of the CSIR- Research Staff Association, Ghana Science Association, and Plant Protection Society of Ghana. Hanif is currently a PhD candidate at the department of Crop and Soil Sciences at KNUST.

Mr. Joshua Obeng , CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute

Joshua Obeng is a plant pathologist at the CSIR-OIL Palm Research Institute, Kusi in the Eastern region of Ghana. His research interests are to identify fungi and bacteria morphologically and molecularly. Also, to manage plant diseases biologically, holistically and improve host plant resistance.

Mr. William Opare Danso, Oil Palm Research Institute

Mr. William Opare Danso is a Research Scientist at CSIR-Oil palm Research Institute.

Mr. Daniel Agyei-Dwarko, CSIR-Oil Palm Research Institute

Mr. Daniel Agyei-Dwarko is a Senior Research Scientist/Plant Breeder at CSIR-Oil Palm
Research Institute, his research areas includes:
i) Implementation of the Research (Breeding) Programmes of the Crop Improvement Division:
Progeny Trials, Breeding Blocks, Germplasm Collection, Conservation and Evaluation, Oil
Palm Mutation Breeding.
ii) Compilation and statistical analysis of yield and fruit/bunch analysis data.
iii) Identification and selection of trees to be used for seed production and further breeding

iv) collection, processing and storage of pollen for the performance of special breedingcrosses.
v) Monitoring of field activities relating to seed production (Isolation, Bagging, Pollination etc.).
vi) Writing of Divisional Annual Report and other research reports.