Summary
Pasteurisation of potato tubers by immersion in hot water is being examined as a method of blackleg control. Studies on the in vitro heat resistance of representative pectolytic erwinia have enabled prediction curves for the selection of suitable times and temperatures of pasteurisation to be prepared. High levels of contamination on some tubers may require heat treatment that will reduce the erwinia population by more than 80% to ensure that only innocuous levels remain.
References
Blodgett, F. M., 1923. Time-temperature curves for killing potato tubers by heat treatments.Phytopathology 13 (11): 466–475.
Fernelius, A. L., C. E. Wilkes, Ira A. DeArmon & R. E. Lincoln, 1958. A probit method to interpret thermal inactivation of bacterial spores.Journal of Bacteriology 75 (3): 300–304.
Mackay, J. M., 1983. Studies on the effects of field and storage environments on potato blackleg and bacterial soft rot with reference to disease control. Ph. D. Thesis, University of Aberdeen.
Malcolmson, J. F., 1959. A study of Erwinia isolates obtained from soft rots and blackleg of potatoes.Transactions of the British Mycological Society 42: 261–269.
Meynell, G. G. & Elinor Meynell, 1965. Quantitative aspects of microbiological experiments. In: Theory and practice in experimental bacteriology, p. 147–199. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
Pérombelon, M. C. M., 1986a. The blackleg problem in the Mediterranean region. In: D. C. Granham & M. D. Harrison (Eds.), Report of the International Conference on Potato Blackleg Diseases, p. 57–59. Potato Marketing Board and Potato Association of America. ISBN 0 903623 24 2.
Pérombelon, M. C. M., 1986b. Blackleg and other potato diseases caused by soft rot erwinias: a proposal for a revised definition of the terminology. In: D. C. Graham & M. D. Harrison (Eds.), Report of the International Conference on Potato Diseases, p. 15–18. Potato Marketing Board and Potato Association of America. ISBN 0 903623 24 2.
Pérombelon, M. C. M. & L. J. Hyman, 1986. A rapid method for identifying and quantifying soft rot erwinias directly from plant material based on their temperature tolerances and sensitivity to erythromycin.Journal of Applied Bacteriology 60 (1): 61–66.
Pérombelon, M. C. M. & A. Kelman, 1980. Ecology of the soft rot erwinias.Annual Review of Phytopathology 18: 361–367.
Robinson, K., 1984. The quantitative assessment of potato tuber contamination byErwinia spp. Bacteriology Division Report, School of Agriculture, Aberdeen.
Robinson, K., 1986. Changes in the total population of tuber-borne pectolytic erwinia occurring between lifting and planting. Bacteriology Division Report, School of Agriculture, Aberdeen.
Smith, E. F., 1920. Jone's soft rot of carrots etc. In: An introduction to bacterial diseases of plants. Chapter 6, p. 223–252. W. B. Saunders, Philadelphia and London.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Robinson, K., Foster, G. Control of potato blackleg by tuber pasteurisation: the determination of time-temperature combinations for the inactivation of pectolytic erwinia. Potato Res 30, 121–125 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02357691
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02357691