Abstract

Carrot is an important crop in Israel, subjected to postharvest decay, incited in cold storage by the fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, which may cause up to 7% loss. The fungicide iprodione, which had been used until recently to limit decay was phased-out in 2020. Hence, in the present study, the fungicide fludioxonil was examined as a replacement. In two cold storage trials with artificial inoculations, fludioxonil (0.1%; v/v) treated carrots had 43 and 37% and 69 and 58% less (P<0.0001) decay than carrots treated with chlorinated (200 ppm) water control or with the commercial reference tiabendazole, respectively. In two long-term commercial trials, without inoculations, carrots treated with fludioxonil (0.1%; v/v) had 98 and 96% less (P<0.0001) decay than carrots treated with chlorinated water as control. Following the result of this study, fludioxonil at a rate of 0.1% (v/v) was approved for use in stored carrots in Israel and was incorporated into commercial production as a replacement of iprodione starting January 2021.

Key words: Carrots, Sclerotinia sclerotiorum, iprodione, fludioxonil, cold storage, postharvest.