Etiology, Epidemiology, and Management of Sugar Beet Diseases

Sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) is commercially cultivated in the northern temperature zone, i.e. between 30° and 60° latitudes north. Sugar beet is the second source of sugar (sucrose) after sugarcane; it is covering about 40% of the world's sugar demands. On the contrary with sugarcane, sugar beet stores sugar in the roots not the stalks as in sugarcane. Like other crops, the plant density in the unit area is one of the most important factors affecting sugar beet production. Various fungal pathogens can decrease the number of cultivated plants and cause substantial economic losses at all plant stages, especially damping-off diseases in the seedling stage and root rot diseases during growth. On the other hand, foliar diseases (leaf spots, rust, powdery mildew, and viral diseases) also affect sugar production as well as the quality of roots. In this chapter, we will discuss the economic root diseases and foliar diseases that affect sugar beet and sucrose production quantitatively and qualitatively. This chapter will discuss foliar and root diseases and the etiology, epidemiology, and management of each disease.