Study of the Role of Fusarium in the Field Establishment Problem of Miscanthus

摘要

There is an increasing interest in using Miscanthus as a CO_2 neutral energy source for thatching, plant fibres for biodegradable composites, and ethanol production. To prevent Miscanthus from becoming a weed problem, cultivars have to be seed sterile, and therefore plants have to be vegetatively propagated. Fields with in vitro propagated plants of Miscanthus x ogiformis Honda 'Giganteus' (Linde-Laursen, 1993) have been established in many European countries, e.g. Austria, Denmark, the Netherlands,Germany, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK. In recent years the cultivar Miscanthus sinensis 'Goliath' has also been planted in Germany and Switzerland. Only sparse information about disease problems in Miscanthus is available: downy mildew (Peronoscle-rospora sacchan) and smut (Ustilago scitaminea) (Chen & Lo, 1989), Fusarium (Thinggaard, 1994; Gossmann, 1994, 1995; Muller & Nirenberg, 1994) and Miscanthus blight (Leptosphaeria sp.) (O'Neill & Farr, 1996).