Bacterial Leaf Blight Symptoms on Rice
Bacterial Leaf Blight (bacterium - Xanthomonas campestris pv oryzae: This disease
was identified for the first time in Texas in 1987. The disease is very
destructive in Asia, but at this time it appears that the strain of the bacterium
in Texas is not very aggressive and causes negligible losses. The first symptom
of the disease is a water soaked lesion on the edges of the leaf blades near the
leaf tip. The lesions expand and turn yellowish and eventually grayish-white. High
rainfall with strong winds are thought thought to provide conditions for the
bacteria to multiply and enter the leaf through injured tissue. The bacterium has
been isolated from clubhead grass (Leersia hexandra) collected form rice fields
in Texas. Fall plowing or rolling of stubble to hasten decay of the rice debris
should help to manage the disease by destroying the tissue in which the bacterium
is maintained.
February, 1996
