Bayoud disease of date palm in Algeria: History, epidemiology and integrated disease management

Abstract

The bayoud is transmitted by the fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. albedinis, which causes drying and rapid die back. To date, the disease has destroyed more than 12 million date palms in Morocco, or two-thirds of the producers of the best dates trees in this country, and three million of palm trees in Algeria with the threat of the spread of this disease to oasis southeast of Algeria. The research on this disease is very few in Algeria, in this case, this work had objective to study the growth and spread of the disease bayoud on the Algerian palm. is based on the observation of symptoms on palms, it showed that all regions with palm in Bechar (Saoura) and in Adrar (Touat), affected with some palm of Ghardaïa. Prophylactic measures are taken to protect and preserve our date resources (including 'Deglet Nour') in free palm (Zibans and Oued Righ in southeast of Algeria) by improving irrigation methods and the use of free releases, and determination date palm cultivars resistant to the fungus as Takarboucht in oasis of Ghardaïa and Adrar, Hmira and Hartan for Bechar’s date palms.

Keywords: Date palm, bayoud disease, saoura, resistance, IPM.