Aspergillus species from section Flavi isolated from soil at planting and harvest time in peanut-growing regions of Argentina

Aspergillus species from section Flavi were isolated from soil samples in three peanut-growing regions of Cordoba Province, Argentina. The samples were collected during the planting and harvest periods. Both total fungal population and Aspergillus species from section Flavi showed no significant differences between planting and harvest time in two of the regions evaluated. Only in one region were there significant differences in cfu g^-1 of total fungal population and Aspergillus species from section Flavi. A flavus was the dominant species isolated in all three localities during the planting and harvest periods. There were significant differences (p < 0.05) in the ratio of toxigenic and atoxigenic strains dependent on the period and the region evaluated. In one region, higher frequencies of toxigenic A flavus and A parasiticus in soil were found and a high contamination level of aflatoxins was detected in peanut seeds.