Garlic Health Guardian Quiz Quiz

Explore essential knowledge for preventing diseases in garlic cultivation, focusing on practical techniques and common risks. Enhance your understanding of effective strategies to maintain healthy garlic crops.

1. Identifying Fungal Threats

   Which fungus is most commonly responsible for white rot in garlic fields, often causing yellowing leaves and decaying bulbs?

   1. Rhizoctonia solani
   2. Botrytis cinerea
   3. Fusarium oxysporum
   4. Sclerotium cepivorum

   Explanation: Sclerotium cepivorum is the primary pathogen causing white rot in garlic, leading to distinctive white, fluffy fungal growth and bulb decay. Fusarium oxysporum more commonly induces basal rot, not typical white rot, while Rhizoctonia solani is associated with damping-off. Botrytis cinerea generally causes gray mold, not characteristic symptoms of white rot in garlic.

2. Crop Rotation Benefits

   Why is practicing crop rotation effective in reducing disease incidence in successive garlic plantings?

   1. It guarantees higher temperatures
   2. It disrupts pathogen life cycles
   3. It boosts direct plant immunity
   4. It increases soil acidity

   Explanation: Crop rotation works by interrupting the continuity of host availability, thereby disrupting the life cycles of soilborne pathogens that affect garlic. Increasing soil acidity can actually harm garlic growth. Higher temperatures are not consistently linked with disease prevention. Crop rotation doesn't directly boost plant immunity but rather reduces disease pressure.

3. Water Management Practices

   Which irrigation method helps limit the spread of leaf and bulb diseases in garlic compared to overhead watering?

   1. Sprinkler irrigation
   2. Flood irrigation
   3. Mist irrigation
   4. Drip irrigation

   Explanation: Drip irrigation delivers water directly to the base of garlic plants, minimizing moisture on foliage and reducing the risk of splash-dispersed pathogens. Flood irrigation can encourage excessive soil moisture, while sprinkler and mist irrigation both increase leaf wetness, promoting disease development.

4. Seed Stock Selection

   How does using disease-free certified seed garlic contribute to disease prevention in a crop?

   1. It accelerates plant growth hydraulically
   2. It reduces introduction of pathogens into the field
   3. It makes garlic bulbs larger by default
   4. It blocks windborne spores from landing

   Explanation: Planting disease-free certified seed helps prevent the initial introduction and spread of pathogens that may be present on infected bulbs. Hydraulic acceleration and bulb enlargement are not direct effects of seed certification, and certified seed does not prevent windborne spores from landing.

5. Soil Preparation and Sanitation

   Before planting garlic, what is the main reason for removing plant debris and practicing good field sanitation?

   1. To eliminate sources of overwintering pathogens
   2. To increase aphid populations for pollination
   3. To provide more shade for seedlings
   4. To raise soil pH significantly

   Explanation: Plant debris can harbor fungi, bacteria, and nematodes that overwinter and infect the next garlic crop. Changing soil pH is not the primary goal, providing extra shade is not beneficial for garlic, and aphids are pests rather than pollinators or helpers in garlic cultivation.