Abstract
In October, 1983 the exotic cowpea (Vilna unguiculata (L•) Walp.) cultiv-ars growing at National Agricultural Research Centre, Islamabad, suffered from Anthracnose disease. The disease severity ranged from 2,15% depending on the cultivar affected. Though all above ground plant parts were affected, the disease was severe on stems and pods. On stem the lesions were orange to reddish-brown which gradually enlarged, became sunken and developed acer-vuli with black setae. Lesions on pods were small, few mm to 1 cm in size, light brown to pinkish at the border but dark-brown to black in th centre. Similar symptoms have been described by Smart (1976) for cowpea Anthracnose. The ,causal organism of the disease was insolated in pure culture on potato dextrose agar (FDA) and was identified as Colletotrichum iindemuthianum (Saco. and Mang.) Bd. and Ca.v. The pathogenicity was confirmed through Koch'e postulates, on cowpea plants grown in pots C. lindemuthianum has got a wide host range inchuding lima bean, scarlet summer bean, tepary bean, mung bean, cowpea and broad bean (Walker. 1952). Copwea Anthracnose, though already reported from Nigeria, India and Brazil (Singh and Allen, 1979), is a new disease record in Pakistan,
REFERENCES
Smart, J. 1978. Diseases and disease control. Tropical pulses. Longman Group Ltd. London. p 256, Walker, J. 0. 1952. Diseases of vegetable crops. McGraw Hill Book Company Inc. New York. pp. 26-29. Singh, S. R. and D, J. Allen. 1979. Cowpea Pests and Diseases. Manua/ Series No, 2 IITA. Ibadan, Nigeria. p. 113.
*National Agricultural Research Centre, Islamabad (Pakistan). 122
