References on Mango

Johnson G. I., Coates L. M.

Author Affiliation: CSIRO Division of Horticulture, Cunningham Laboratory, 306 Carmody Rd, St Lucia, Queensland 4067, Australia.
Postharvest News and Information 4 : 27N-34N

Abstract : Mango, the apple of the tropics, is increasing in significance in the export trade. The rapid ripening of mango fruit and their poor tolerance of low temperatures are conditions which limit storage life and encourage the development of postharvest diseases. The most important diseases responsible for losses in mango and in most other tropical fruits (pineapple being an exception) are anthracnose caused by Colletotrichum spp., and stem end rots caused by anamorphs of Botryosphaeria spp. (Dothiorella spp. and Lasiodiplodia theobromae). They develop during fruit ripening from quiescent infections initiated in the field. Stem end rot caused by L. theobromae can also be initiated from soilborne inoculum at harvest. Alternaria rot, black mould rot and transit rot are of local or sporadic significance, while additional diseases that are not reviewed here (bacterial spot, powdery mildew, sooty mould, scab) can occur on fruit in the field, and affected fruit may be encountered during harvest and grading. Control measures for mango diseases have emphasized crop husbandry, field sprays with fungicides and the use of postharvest heat and fungicide treatments. The increasing interest in low-temperature transport systems for accessing export markets, the development of non-chemical disinfestation procedures (for fruit fly larvae) and the withdrawal of postharvest fungicides have stimulated recent research. Use of environmental data to predict periods of high infection risk will improve efficacy of fungicides and biological control agents applied to control the postharvest pathogens that infect fruit before harvest. Development of management systems to delay fruit infection by endophytic inoculum of stem end rot fungi will reduce reliance on postharvest fungicides for control of stem end rot.