Integrated and eco-friendly strategies for disease management in cotton: A Comprehensive Review

Cotton (Gossypium spp.) is the most significant commercial crop in the world, providing a critical source of fiber, oil, and revenue for millions of farmers, particularly in less-developed nations. Yet, its productivity is gravely endangered by several diseases caused by fungi, bacteria, viruses, and nematodes. Major diseases like Fusarium wilt, Verticillium wilt, bacterial blight, cotton leaf curl virus, and root-knot nematodes result in significant yield loss and downgrade fibre quality. While effective in the short term, traditional chemical-based management practices are detrimental to the environment and human health and tend to create resistance in pathogens. Therefore, integrated and eco-friendly disease management practices need to be adopted that use host resistance, cultural practices, biological control agents, and botanical extracts. This review emphasizes the primary diseases of cotton and reviews recent developments and environmentally friendly management strategies for these diseases. Special emphasis is placed on the potential of integrated disease management (IDM) practices as long-term, environmentally friendly solutions to ensure cotton health and productivity. The article concludes with the holistic strategies with the integration of modern biotechnological tools and traditional ecological knowledge for effective and sustainable disease management in cotton.