Fungi associated with disease of water-apple (Syzygium aqueum (Burm.) F. Alston) and their possible control methods

These studies were done for the following purposes: to identify fungi associated with disease of Syzygium aqueum; to describe the fungi morphological characteristics; to study their physiological characteristics at different temperature and pH levels; to identify possible pathogen that causes the disease; to evaluate effect of fungicides on the selected fungi and to observe the interaction between selected fungi with Trichoderma sp. as bio-control agent. Samples of S. aqueum were taken from Kuching, Padawan, Sri Arnan and also bought from the market. Diseases found on S. aqueum are brown leaf spots, yellow leaf spots, red-brown leaf spots, grey leaf-spots, brown-white spots, discolouration of leaf tip and black-rot fruit. Infected parts are inoculated into Potato Dextrose Agar (PDA) media. The fungi identified associated with the diseases are Pestalotiopsis sp.1, Pestalotiopsis sp.2, Pestalotiopsis sp.3, Colletotrichum sp.4, Colletotrichum sp.5, Colletotrichum sp.6, Colletotrichum sp.7, Botryodiplodia sp., Trichoderma sp, and Fusarium sp.. Physiological studies show that optimum growth rates of fungi are different for each species, ranging from temperature 15°C to 30°C. Beside that, all fungi are able to grow at pH 3 to pH8. Pathogenicity test shows Botryodiplodia sp. inoculated on S. aqueum fruits cause same symptoms as black-rot disease. The growth of Pestalotiopsis sp.l, Colletotrichum sp.4, Botryodiplodia sp., Trichoderma sp. and Fusarium sp. were greatest inhibited by Benomyl, followed by Captan and Ancozeb. Trichoderma sp. that inoculated with Pestalotiopsis sp.l, Colletotrichum sp.4, Botryodiplodia sp. and Fusarium sp. shows competition occur between them.