Pathogenicity of Selected Soil-Borne Fungi for Seedlings of Root Chicory (Cichorium intybus L. var. sativum Bisch.)

The study involved seedlings of Cichorium intybus var. sativum cv. ‘Polanowicka’ and fungi (Alternaria alternata, Botrytis cinerea, Fusarium culmorum, Fusarium oxysporum, Pythium irregulare, Rhizoctonia solani and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) colonizing the soil environment in the field cultivation of that plant. Pathogenicity tests carried out in a phytotron showed that pre-emergence damping-off of chicory seeds, and thus no germination, was caused mainly by S. sclerotiorum, P. irregulare and A. alternata. The most harmful for the seedlings of root chicory proved to be P. irregulare, A. alternata, R. solani and F. oxysporum, while the least harmful were B. cinerea and F. culmorum. The growth of the affected plants was arrested and well-defined necrotic lesions appeared on their roots.