Validated Ganoderma Screening
Basal stem rot (BSR), caused primarily by Ganoderma boninense, remains the most devastating disease affecting the oil palm industry (Figure 1). The disease causes severe yield losses, compromises plantation longevity, and increases replanting costs, ultimately threatening long-term productivity and sustainability (Idris, 2011). The development of Elaeis guineensis progenies resistant to Ganoderma may provide the ideal long-term solution for BSR, a major disease of oil palm in Malaysia (Idris et al., 2004). Despite extensive efforts to develop resistant planting materials, one of the major limitations in resistance breeding has been the absence of reliable and standardised reference materials to benchmark screening outcomes.
Main researcher: Dr. Shamala Sundram
E-mail: shamala@mpob.gov.my