Control measures
- Use adequate rotations taking into account potential soil contamination and the other crop species cultivated in the field.
- Plant in heated and well-prepared soil.
- Use healthy seed tubers to ensure a homogeneous emergence and a low risk of sclerotia on the tubers at harvest.
- Some cultivars might be less prone to sclerotia formation on tubers at harvest. Until now, current cultivars have not been adequately assessed.
- Chemical protection of the tuber before planting is an additional guarantee of safety; soil treatment at planting is permitted in some countries.
- Destroying haulms by uprooting them may reduce the formation of sclerotia. It is essential that the interval between haulm destruction and harvest should be as short as possible.
- Other control measures such as biological control with antagonistic fungi (Verticillium, Trichoderma) are being studied as well as the use of green manure crops.