Importance of Early Blight of Potato Induced by (Alternaria solani) and Its Management

Potato is an important vegetable crop in terms of quantities produced and consumed worldwide. Potato early blight disease, caused by two species of genus Alternaria (A. solani and A. alternata), is the major threat to potato production in the world. Early blight of potato is prevalent worldwide wherever potato is grown. In India it is more common than late blight and may cause up to 40% loss in yield. Management of early blight is too difficult because it produces huge amount of secondary inoculums. Using good cultural practices and applying chemical fungicides are important in managing of early blight disease of potato. Even though there is no well developed biological control of early blight, it is very important to develop such management strategies; because biological control measures are specific, efficient and environmentally safe. In current article we are highlighting its importance and some tools for managing effectively.