The methods to control white mold of bean include a layer of straw on the soil surface and the increase in row spacing, aiming to provide disadvantage to the pathogen. The objective of this paper was to assess the change in row spacing and the presence or absence of ground cover (straw) for control of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum in common bean. The experimental design was randomized blocks in factorial scheme 2x3, consisting of six treatments with four replications. The first factor was the management of crop residues, with two levels of management (with and without coverage of soil). The second factor was the spacing between lines, with three levels (20, 40 and 60cm). The variables were the area below the disease progress curve (AUDPC), incidence of white mold, sclerotia numbers, weight of 100 grains and yield. There was no significant interaction (P<0.05) between the management of crop residues and spacing. The spacing between rows 40 and 60cm were significantly better than 20cm to reduce the number of sclerotia of S. sclerotiorum, white mold incidence and AUDPC. The yield and weight of 100 grains were not affected by variations in the spacing and ground cover.
soil coverage; seeding density; incidence of white mold
