📈 Diseases of Other Pulses

Besides chickpea and pigeonpea, India grows several other important pulse crops including lentil (Lens culinaris), mungbean (Vigna radiata), urdbean (Vigna mungo), and field pea (Pisum sativum). Each faces specific disease challenges.

Diseases of Lentil

Rust

Causal Organism: Uromyces viciae-fabae

Symptoms:

• Small, circular, cinnamon-brown uredial pustules on leaves, stems, and pods
• Pustules appear on both leaf surfaces
• Heavy infection causes premature defoliation and poor grain filling
• Telial pustules (dark brown to black) develop late in the season

Favorable Conditions:

• Cool, humid weather (15-25 degrees C) with intermittent rain
• Most severe in late-sown crops during February-March

Management:

• Grow resistant varieties (e.g., Pant L 4, IPL 316)
• Timely sowing (early November)
• Foliar spray of Mancozeb 75 WP (0.25%) or Dithane M-45

Wilt Complex

Causal Organism: Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. lentis (often in complex with Rhizoctonia and Sclerotium)

Symptoms:

• Sudden drooping and drying of plants
• Internal vascular browning in roots and lower stem
• Plants die with leaves attached

Management:

• Seed treatment with Trichoderma viride (4 g/kg) + Carbendazim (2 g/kg)
• Resistant varieties
• Crop rotation with cereals

Diseases of Mungbean and Urdbean

Yellow Mosaic Disease (YMD)

Causal Organism: Mungbean Yellow Mosaic India Virus (MYMIV) — a begomovirus

Vector: Whitefly (Bemisia tabaci) — persistent manner

This is the most devastating disease of mungbean and urdbean, causing yield losses of 20-100%.

Symptoms:

• Bright yellow mosaic patches alternating with green areas on leaves
• Leaves may become completely yellow in severe cases
• Stunted growth, fewer pods, and shrivelled seeds
• Pods may show yellow discolouration

Favorable Conditions:

Management:

• Grow resistant varieties (e.g., mungbean: SML 668, IPM 02-3; urdbean: IPU 2-43)
• Control whitefly vector with Imidacloprid 17.8 SL (0.3 ml/L) or Thiamethoxam
• Rogue out infected plants at early stage
• Avoid sowing near old infected crops
• Use yellow sticky traps for whitefly monitoring

Cercospora Leaf Spot

Causal Organism: Cercospora canescens

Symptoms:

• Circular to irregular brown spots with dark margin and lighter centre on leaves
• Severe infection causes defoliation and pod infection
• Grains become spotted and discoloured

Management:

• Foliar spray of Carbendazim (0.1%) or Mancozeb (0.25%)
• Use tolerant varieties

Anthracnose

Causal Organism: Colletotrichum lindemuthianum

Symptoms:

• Dark brown to black, sunken lesions on pods, stems, and leaves
• Lesions show pinkish spore masses (acervuli) in wet conditions
• Seed-borne infection leads to infected seedlings

Management:

• Use certified disease-free seed
• Seed treatment with Thiram (3 g/kg)
• Crop rotation for 2-3 years

Diseases of Field Pea

Powdery Mildew

Causal Organism: Erysiphe pisi

Symptoms:

• White, powdery fungal growth on leaves, stems, and pods
• Starts on lower leaves and spreads upward
• Severe infection causes premature drying, reduced pod set

Favorable Conditions:

• Dry weather with moderate temperature (20-25 degrees C)
• Late-sown crops are most affected

Management:

• Grow resistant varieties
• Spray Wettable sulphur (0.3%) or Triadimefon (0.1%)
• Early sowing to escape late-season infection

Rust of Field Pea

Causal Organism: Uromyces viciae-fabae

Symptoms: Similar to lentil rust — cinnamon-brown pustules on leaves and stems

Management:

• Resistant varieties and timely fungicide sprays
• Mancozeb or Propiconazole applications

Summary Cheat Sheet