Rhizoctonia Root and Crown Rot of Sugar Beet

Rhizoctonia root and crown rot (RRCR), caused by the soilborne pathogen Rhizoctonia solani, is a common, endemic soilborne disease of sugar beet wherever the crop is grown. The disease threatens or affects economic returns on an estimated 24 percent of acres planted to sugar beet in the United States and from 5 percent to 10 percent in Europe. Losses caused by RRCR very from field to field and range from negligible to over 50 percent.