Anthracnose (Colletotrichum musae) gives latent fruit infections, the symptoms of which generally only become clear as the fruit ripens. The time taken between infection and the symptoms of the disease developing can be over five months.
Symptoms of anthracnose include black and sunken lesions with spore masses or acervuli in the lesion. On yellowing fruits, these lesions are of variable sizes and can coalesce to become sizeable black sunken patches.
The disease results in premature ripening and shriveling of the fruits which are covered with pink spore masses. Occurrence if black lesions on the pedicel causes withering of the pedicel and dropping of the fingers from the hands.
Orange to salmon pink colored fungi growth appear in their center. Infection on the banana usually starts during the development of the fruit but remains quiescent until the fruit ripens; symptoms often manifest during storage and marketing.
Anthracnose disease can be prevented by:
*Actively remove weeds and other non-crop species from plots to reduce favourable humid conditions for fungal infection.
*Sufficient irrigation and draining of plantations to reduce unnecessary conditions which favour fungi.
Anthracnose of banana
