Import/export of groundnut germplasm

Contributors to this page: ICRISAT, Patancheru, India (RP Thakur, AG Girish, VP Rao).

Exporting Germplasm

The ICRISAT-PQL, in conjunction with NBPGR Regional Station, Hyderabad, conducts seed health tests on germplasm prior to export. The following export guidelines are to be followed before submitting seed material This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for export.

Guidelines

• Pre-export inspection of seed multiplication fields by NBPGR quarantine officials for seedborne diseases at various growth stages of the crop to avoid their spread.
• Collection of seed from fully mature and healthy plants.
• Cleaning seed to remove insects, pathogen propagules (smut sori, ergot sclerotia, and nematode cysts), weed seed, crop debris, soil clods, stones, other foreign material, and small, shrunken, discolored and damaged seed.
• Submission of an on-line request for export of germplasm (form available at ICRISAT intranet under GT-Crop Improvement).
• Submission of untreated seed in fresh muslin bags or paper packets along with the four-point declaration certificate (available at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) for quarantine processing.
• Submission of the phytosanitary requirements, such as import permit, non-commercial value certificate, additional declaration for seed borne pathogens and pests, and any other specific regulations/requirements.

Examples of seed export letters are given below:

• Seed export letter - air mail
• Seed export letter - courier

For more detailed information see the full text of the Plant Quarantine Guidelines and Procedures for Germplasm Exchange of ICRISAT Mandate Crops (ICRISAT, 2004).

Importing Germplasm

Seed and plant material for research can only be imported into India after obtaining an Import Permit (IP). As per Schedule X of the Plant Quarantine Order, 2003, Director, NBPGR is empowered to issue import permits for all kinds of import of plant germplasm for public/private sector institutions in the country. An IP is also required to import live insects, all fungi in pure cultures, soil, or clay for microbiological studies or physical and chemical analyses. For each of these items, authorities designated by the Government of India issue the import permit. The consignee should abide by the following import guidelines.

Guidelines

• Submission of on-line request for import (form available at ICRISAT intranet under GT-Crop Improvement) of seed/plant/plant products/ other material) to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
• Submission of the import application by This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to the relevant import-issuing authority (see table below).

Competent authorities to issue various import permits

* After getting clearance from the Department of Biotechnology (DBT), Block 2, 7th floor, C.G.O. Complex, Lodi Road, New Delhi 110030

• This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. provides the import permit to the consignee along with mailing labels, guidelines, and an advance notice form for onward transfer to the consignor.
• Advance notification of shipment by the consignor to the Director, NBPGR, New Delhi 110012, India with a copy to the Chief Plant Quarantine Officer, ICRISAT.
• (The consignor should use green-mailing labels bearing the address “Director, NBPGR, New Delhi 110 012”).
• Accompanied baggage import: Seed and plant material brought as accompanied baggage also requires an IP and PC. The international airports located at New Delhi, Chennai, Mumbai, and Kolkata are the points of entry for seed/plant samples brought into India as accompanied baggage. In such cases the seed samples should be handed over to the staff of the Plant Quarantine and Fumigation stations at the airport. 

For more detailed information see the full text of the Plant Quarantine Guidelines and Procedures for Germplasm Exchange of ICRISAT Mandate Crops (ICRISAT, 2004).

References and further reading

International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT). 2004. Plant Quarantine Guidelines and Procedures for Germplasm Exchange of ICRISAT Mandate Crops. Indian Council of Agricultural Research, India; National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, India; International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics, India.

Guidelines for the safe transfer of groundnut germplasm

Contributors to this page: ICRISAT, Patancheru, India (RP Thakur, AG Girish, VP Rao).

Technical Guidelines for the Safe Transfer of Germplasm and the
Protection of CGIAR Germplasm Banks

Pathogens of quarantine significance of groundnut tested by the Germplasm Health Laboratory of ICRISAT

Bacteria - groundnut

Contributors to this page: ICRISAT, Patancheru, India (RP Thakur, AG Girish, VP Rao).

Bacterial wilt

Scientific name

Ralstonia solanacearum (Smith) Yabuuchi et al.

Other scientific names

Bacterium solanacearum, Burkholderia solanacearum, Pseudomonas solanacearum

Importance

Medium

Significance

Bacterial wilt is a major constraint to groundnut production in China, Indonesia and Vietnam. Yield losses of 10 to 30% commonly occur and can reach over 60% in heavily infested fields (Mehan et al. 1994).

Symptoms

Wilt symptoms can be seen 2-3 weeks after planting. The first sign of disease is a slight drooping or curling of one or more leaves. In more advanced stages, the plants may bend over at the tip, appear dry, and eventually turn brown, wither, and die. Infected plants have discolored and rotten roots and pods. The diagnostic characteristics of this disease are the dark brown discoloration in the xylem and pith, and the streaming of ‘bacterial ooze’ (Mehan et al. 1994).

Hosts

Arachis hypogaea (groundnut), Capsicum spp. (chillies), Gossypium hirsutum (Cotton), Ipomoea batatus (sweet potato), Lycopersicon esculentum (tomato), Manihot esculenta (cassava), Musa spp. (banana), Nicotiana spp. (tobaco), Solanum melongena (brinjal), Solanum tuberosum (potato) and Zingiber officinale (ginger).

Geographic distribution

Bacterial wilt is global in distribution, and mostly prevalent in several countries of Asia, Africa and North America.

Biology and transmission

Ralstonia solanacearum is an aerobic, non-spore-forming, rod shaped, gram- negative bacterium. The bacterial cells measure approximately 0.5 ´ 1.5 m. Virulent isolates are mainly non-flagellate and non-motile. Avirulent isolates usually bear 1-4 polar flagellae and are highly motile. Common fimbriae are often present in both virulent and avirulent isolates. Although it does not produce fluorescent pigments, it produces a brown diffusible pigment on a variety of agar media containing tyrosine. The bacterium grows at a wide range of temperatures from 25 to 35°C. The bacterium is mainly disseminated through infested soil, water and infected seed (Anitha et al. 2003).

Detection/indexing methods at ICRISAT 

• Direct plating of 4-week old leaf-twigs, leaf-bits and seed on Tetrazolium chloride agar (TZCA) medium is used to detect the wilt pathogen in groundnut (Prasada Rao et al. 2000;  Anitha et al. 2004).

Treatment/control

• Not available.

Procedures followed in case of positive test at ICRISAT

• Incineration of the infected plants and rejection of the seed samples.

References and further reading

Anitha K, Gunjotikar GA, Chakrabarty SK, , Singh SD, Sarath Babu B, Prasada Rao RDVJ and Varaprasad KS. 2003. Interception of bacterial wilt, Burkholderia solanacearum in groundnut germplasm imported from Australia. Journal of Oilseeds Research 20: 101-104.

Anitha K, Chakrabarty SK, Girish AG, Prasada Rao RDVJ and Varaprasad KS. 2004. Detection of bacterial wilt infection in imported groundnut germplasm. Indian Journal of Plant Protection 32:147-148.

Mehan VK, Liao BS, Tan YJ, Robinson-Smith A, McDonald D and Hayward AC. 1994. Bacterial wilt of groundnut. Information Bulletin no. 35. Patancheru, AP 502 324, India: International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics. 28pp.

Prasada Rao RDVJ, Gunjotikar GA,.Chakrabarty SK, Varaprasad KS, Singh SD and Bramel-Cox PJ. 2000. Detection of Ralstonia solanacearum in seeds of wild Arachis spp. imported from Brazil. Indian Journal of Plant Protection 28: 51-56.

Bacterial wilt (Ralstonia solanacearum) of groundnut: drooping and curling of leaves (photo:ICRISAT)

Fungi (groundnut)

Contributors to this page: ICRISAT, Patancheru, India (RP Thakur, AG Girish, VP Rao).

Verticillium wilt

Scientific name

Verticillium dahliae Kleb. and Verticillium albo-atrum Reinke & Berthie

Other scientific names

Verticillium albo-atrum var. chlamydosporale, Verticillium albo-atrum var. dahliae, Verticillium albo-atrum var. medium, Verticillium dahliae f. chlamydosporale, Verticillium dahliae f. medium, Verticillium ovatum, Verticillium tracheiphilum.

Importance to CGIAR centers

High

Significance

Verticilliumdahliae affects many important crops including peanut and causes losses of economic significance in many countries. 

Symptoms

Early symptoms usually appear at the flowering stage and include marginal chlorosis of the leaves, loss of leaf turgidity and leaf curling. Leaf symptoms are generally yellowing and leaflet necrosis, followed by wilting and defoliation. The roots of the infected plants have brown discoloration of the vascular tissues. Occasionally plants die, and the roots of the dead plants are severely rotted (Subrahmanyam et al. 1992).

Hosts

Verticilliumdahliae has a very wide host range among economically important crops such as Gossypium (cotton), Solanum tuberosum (potato), Solanum melongena (aubergine), Capsicum annuum (bell pepper), Olea europaea subsp. europaea (olive), Brassica napus var. napus (rape), Fragaria ananassa (strawberry), Humulus lupulus (hop), Lycopersicon esculentum (tomato), Medicago sativa (lucerne), Mentha (mints),Arachis hypogaea (groundnut), Armoracia rusticana (horseradish), Brassica oleracea var. gemmifera (Brussels sprouts), Pistacia vera (pistachio), Prunus (stone fruit) and Vitis vinifera (grapevine).

Geographic distribution

Verticilliumdahliae is worldwide in distribution, including Asia, Africa, Europe, USA and Australia.

Biology and transmission

Verticilliumdahliae is moderately to fast-growing fungus with little to moderate aerial mycelium and a regular margin, turning black from the centre after a week due to production of microsclerotia. Conidiophores are verticillate and conidiogenous cells subtended in whorls (2-3 per node), and are erect and hyaline. Conidia are ellipsoidal, hyaline, mostly one-celled and produced at the tips of narrow, pointed sterigmata. Conidia are 2.5-6 ´ 1.5-3.0 µm in size. Conidia are produced in succession to form moist spore balls at the tips of conidiogenous cells, giving characteristic appearance to conidiophore in culture. Microsclerotia are of irregular shape and size (50-200 ´ 15-100 µm), dark brown to black and globose. The fungus survives in soil as microsclerotia which germinate in response to root exudates. The hyphae or germinating conidia penetrate the cortex of young roots and the fungus grows into the stele. In the xylem vessels the pathogen spreads by mycelial growth, and also by the production of conidia which get into transpiration stream. Microsclerotia are formed in senescing diseased tissues. The pathogen is disseminated throughout the field soil by farm equipment, wind and water movement and by infected seed.

Detection/indexing methods used in CGIAR at ICRISAT  

• Pre export field inspection and blotter test are used.

Treatment/control

• Not available.

Procedures followed in case of positive test at ICRISAT  

• Incineration of the infected plants and rejection of the infected seed samples.

EPPO protocols

EPPO A2 list: No. 85

Detection. Use of DNA hybridization probes (Robb et al. 1990) and ELISA test for V. albo-atrum are in use in France for testing certified pelargonium (OEPP/EPPO 1992).

Phytosanitary risk. EPPO has listed hop-infecting strains of V. albo-atrum and V. dahliae as A2 quarantine pests (OEPP/EPPO 1982), but no other regional plant protection organization has done so. Regulatory control may remain appropriate, but may take on the character of a certification scheme for planting material.

Phytosanitary Measures. EPPO recommends (OEPP/EPPO 1990) that hop planting material should come from a field where verticillium wilt has not occurred in the last 5 years and that consignments and their mother plants should have been found free from the disease in the last growing season. Such measures are as relevant in a national certification scheme as for international phytosanitary certification.

References and further reading

OEPP/EPPO. 1982. Data sheets on quarantine organisms No. 85, Hop-infecting strains of Verticillium albo-atrum and V. dahliae. Bulletin, OEPP/EPPO Bulletin12 (1).

OEPP/EPPO. 1990. Specific quarantine requirements. EPPO Technical DocumentsNo. 1008.

OEPP/EPPO. 1992. Certification schemes No. 3. Pathogen-tested material of pelargonium. OEPP/EPPO Bulletin22: 285-296.

Robb J, Hu X., Schmidt J, Nazar R. 1990. DNA hybridization probes for the identification and quantification of V. dahliae and V. albo-atrum. In: Abstracts of the 5th International Verticillium Symposium, Leningrad, USSR, p. 97.

Subrahmanyam P, Wongkaew S, Reddy DVR, Demski JW, McDonald D, Sharma SB, Smith DH. 1992. Field diagnosis of groundnut diseases. Information bulletin no. 36, Patancheru, AP, 502 324, India: International Crops Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics. 84pp.

Verticillium wilt (Verticillium dahliae) of groundnut: marginal chlorosis, leaf curling, tiger striping and yellowing of leaves(photo:ICRISAT)

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Anthracnose

Scientific name

Colletotrichum dematium  (Pers.) Grove.

Other scientific names

Colletotrichum bakeri, Colletotrichum brassicae, Colletotrichum lysimachiae, Colletotrichum pucciniophilum, Colletotrichum sanguisorbae, Colletotrichum volutella, Dinemasporium dianthi, Ellisiellina volutella, Sphaeria dematium, Vermicularia bakeri, Vermicularia dematium, Vermicularia dianthi, Vermicularia echinata, Vermicularia lagunensis, Vermicularia lysimachiae, Vermicularia volutella.

Importance to CGIAR centers

Low

Significance

Anthracnose in peanut is of minor importance.

Symptoms

Symptoms appear as wedge-shaped lesions on the leaflet tips. Lesions may also develop on the leaflet margins leading to marginal blight. The periphery of the advancing margins of the lesion is surrounded by the yellow zone. The necrotic tissue becomes dark brown and tends to fragment along the leaflet margins. The disease may also extend to stipules and stems. Fruiting bodies (acervuli) are visible through a hand lens, and are abundant on infected leaf tissue (Subrahmanyam et al. 1992).

Hosts

Allium cepa (onion), Allium porrum (leek), Allium sativum (garlic), Arachis hypogaea (groundnut), Beta vulgaris (beetroot), Helianthus annuus (sunflower), Piper betle (betel pepper), Vicia faba (broad bean), Voandzeia subterranea (bambara groundnut), Abelmoschus esculentus (okra), Allium (onions, garlic, leek, etc.), Cicer arietinum (chickpea), Capsicum annuum (bell pepper), Crotalaria juncea (sunn hemp), Glycine max (soyabean), Lablab purpureus (hyachinth bean), Lycopersicon esculentum (tomato), Vigna radiata (bean, mung), Vigna mungo (black gram), Spinacia oleracea (spinach).

Geographic distribution

Colletotrichum dematium is worldwide in distribution, especially India, Niger, Nigeria, Sudan, Senegal, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Uganda and USA.

Biology and transmission

Mycelium of C.dematium is hyaline, it produces circular, errumpt, dark brown to black acervuli. These acervuli are scattered on the infected pods or aggregated or in groups. Acervuli exude spores in pale to smoke-gray masses. Numerous thick, black, erect setae are interspersed within the acervuli. Conidia are hyaline, 1-celled and 2.5-4.0 ´ 15-32 mm in size. They are fusoid and bluntly tapered at both ends (Ahmed and Ravinder Reddy 1993).

Detection/indexing methods used in CGIAR at ICRISAT  

• Pre export field inspection and blotter test are used.

Treatment/control

• Not available.

Procedures followed in case of positive test at ICRISAT  

• Rejection of seed samples in case of positive test.

References and further reading

Ahmed KM, Ravinder Reddy Ch.1993. A Pictorial guide to the identification of seed borne fungi of sorghum, pearl millet, finger millet, chickpea, pigeonpea and groundnut. Information Bulletin No. 34. Patancheru, A.P. 502 324 India: International Crops Research Institute for the semi-Arid Tropics. 200 pp.

Subrahmanyam P, Wongkaew S, Reddy DVR, Demski JW, McDonald D, Sharma SB, Smith DH. 1992. Field diagnosis of groundnut diseases. Information bulletin no. 36, Patancheru, AP, 502 324, India: International Crops Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics. 84pp.

Anthracnose (Colletotrichum dematium) of groundnut: (A)wedge-shaped lesions on the leaflet; (B)fungal growth on seed; (C)acervuli with setae on seed and (D)conidia (photos:ICRISAT)

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Root rot, Charcoal rot

Scientific names

Rhizoctonia bataticola (Tassi) E.J. Butler, Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid.

Other scientific names

Botryodiplodia phaseoli, Dothiorella cajani, Dothiorella phaseoli, Dothiorella philippinensis, Fusicoccum cajani, Macrophoma cajani, Macrophoma corchori, Macrophoma phaseoli, Macrophoma phaseolina, Macrophoma sesami, Macrophomina philippinensis, Rhizoctonia lamellifera, Sclerotium bataticola, Tiarosporella phaseoli, Tiarosporella phaseolina.

Importance

High

Significance

Charcoal rot is economically important across a broad range of crops throughout the world, particularly in regions that experience hot, dry conditions during the growing period. Yield losses in groundnut of 100, 94 and 63% have been reported when disease appeared at the pre-emergence, pre-pod and pod-filling stages, respectively (Sharma and Bhowmik 1986).

Symptoms

Water-soaked lesions appear on the hypocotyl near the soil surface. The lesions enlarge, become dull brown, girdle the hypocotyle, and kill the plants.  Lesions on the roots appear water-soaked at first, but infected tissues eventually have a dull, light-brown appearance. Later, affected areas become covered with sclerotia. Roots become rotten and blackened with shredding of the taproot. The dead tissues rot and turn black, as sclerotia of the fungus develop profusely. Infected pegs and pods also rot and become covered with sclerotia.

Hosts

Many crop plants including Allium cepa (onion), Allium sativum (garlic), Arachis hypogaea (groundnut), Beta vulgaris var. saccharifera (sugarbeet), Brassica oleracea var. botrytis (cauliflower), Cajanus cajan (pigeon pea), Carthamus tinctorius (safflower), Cicer arietinum (chickpea), Cyamopsis tetragonoloba (clusterbean), Coriandrum sativum (coriander), Capsicum annuum (bell pepper), Cucumis melo (melon), Cucumis sativus (cucumber), Curcuma longa (turmeric), Crocus sativus (saffron), Glycine max (soyabean), Helianthus annuus (sunflower), Nicotiana tabacum (tobacco), Oryza sativa (rice), Pennisetum glaucum (pearl millet), Vigna radiata (bean, mung), Vigna mungo (black gram), Phaseolus vulgaris (common bean), Sorghum bicolor (common sorghum), Vigna unguiculata (cowpea) and Zea mays (maize).

Geographic distribution

Rhizoctonia bataticola  is world wide in distribution.

Biology and transmission

Sclerotia are black, smooth, hard and 0.1-1 mm diameter, and occur within roots, stems, leaves and fruits. Conidiomata are pycnidial, dark-brown, and either solitary or gregarious on leaves and stems; they are immersed, becoming erumpent, 100-200 µm diameter, opening by an apical ostiole; the conidiomatal wall is multicellular with heavily pigmented, thick-walled cells on the outermost side. Conidiophores are hyaline, short and obpyriform to cylindrical, 5-13 ´ 4-6 µm. Conidia   are hyaline, ellipsoid to obovoid, 14-30 ´ 5-10 µm (Ahmed and Ravinder Reddy 1993). R. bataticola or M. phaseolina was detected in the seed coat, cotyledons and embryo of groundnut (Charabarty et al. 2005). It survives under different temperatures from -18°C to 20 °C temperatures (Singh et al. 2003).

Detection/indexing methods at ICRISAT

• Pre export field inspection and blotter test.

Treatment/control

• Seed treatment with a mixture of carbendazim and thiram (1:1) at 2 g a.i. kg^-1 seed.

Procedures followed in case of positive test at ICRISAT  

• If the seed colonization is <20% seed treatment with a mixture of carbendazim and thiram (1:1) at 2 g a.i. kg^-1 is used, and seed samples having >20% colonization are rejected.

References and further reading

Ahmed KM, Ravinder Reddy Ch.1993. A Pictorial guide to the identification of seed borne fungi of sorghum, pearl millet, finger millet, chickpea, pigeonpea and groundnut. Information Bulletin No. 34. Patancheru, A.P. 502 324 India: International Crops Research Institute for the semi-Arid Tropics. 200 pp.

Chakrabarty SK, Girish AG, Anitha K, Prasada Rao RDVJ, Varaprasad KS, Khetarpal RK, Thakur RP. 2005. Detection, seedborne nature, disease transmission and eradication of seedborne infection by Rhizoctonia bataticola (Taub.) Butler in groundnut, Indian Journal of Plant Protection 33: 85-89.

Chakrabarty SK, Anitha K, Girish AG, Sarath Babu B, Prasada Rao RDVJ, Varaprasad KS, Khetarpal RK, Thakur RP. 2005. Germplasm exchange and quarantine of ICRISAT mandate crops. Information Bulletin No. 69. Rajendranagar 500 030, Andhra Pradesh, India: National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources; and Patancheru 502 324, Andhra Pradesh, India: International Crops Research Institute for the Semi Arid Tropics. 80pp.

Sharma RC, Bhowmik TP. 1986. Estimation of yield losses in groundnut due to Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid. Indian Journal of Plant Pathology 4:108-112.

Singh SD, Girish AG, Kameswar Rao N, Bramel PJ, Subhash Chandra. 2003. Survival of Rhizoctonia bataticola in groundnut seed under different storage conditions. Seed Science and technology Journal 31: 169-175.

Charcoal rot (Rhizoctonia bataticola) of groundnut: (A)water soaked necrotic lesions on pods; (B)infected cotyledon; (C)infected seed with sclerotia; (D)sclerotia; (E)pycnidia and conidial ooze on seed; (F)pycnidia; (G)conidial ooze and (H)conidia of Macrophomina phaseolina (photos:ICRISAT)

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