Vol. 8, Issue 1, Part A (2026)

Ginger (Zingiber officinale Rosc.), an economically important spice crop belonging to the family Zingiberaceae, is extensively cultivated in the Marathwada region of Maharashtra, particularly in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district. In recent years, ginger cultivation in this region has been severely affected by fungal diseases, resulting in substantial yield losses and reduced crop productivity. The present study aimed to identify dominant fungal pathogens associated with ginger rhizospheric soils using Internal Transcribed Spacer (ITS) region sequencing.A total of 20 fungal isolates obtained from rhizospheric and soil samples were subjected to molecular characterization. ITS sequence analysis and BLAST comparison revealed four major pathogenic species belonging to the genus Fusarium, namely Fusarium nematophilum, F. proliferatum, F. solani, and F. chlamydosporum. In addition, Talaromyces purpureogenus was identified as an associated soil fungus. Phylogenetic relationships inferred using the Neighbor-Joining method grouped the isolates into distinct, well-supported clades, confirming species-level identification. Accurate molecular identification of rhizospheric fungal pathogens is essential for understanding disease epidemiology and designing targeted disease management strategies. This study provides baseline molecular data on ginger-associated fungal diversity in the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar agro ecological zone.