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Botryosphaeria canker of Cistus ladanifer
Author(s) -
SánchezHernández M. E.,
GutiérrezGarcía J.,
TraperoCasas A.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
plant pathology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.928
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1365-3059
pISSN - 0032-0862
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-3059.2002.00692.x
Subject(s) - botryosphaeria dothidea , biology , shrub , canker , potato dextrose agar , bark (sound) , botany , horticulture , wilting , germination , conidium , agar , ecology , genetics , bacteria
The shrub Cistus ladanifer (gum cistus, rock rose) is a key component of the Maquis in the Mediterranean forests of southern Spain and Portugal. Between 1996 and 1998, and coinciding with exceptionally high rainfall rates, a disease characterized by foliar wilting and death of branches, leading to death of the whole plant, affected C. ladanifer in the Mediterranean oak and pine forests in Andalucía (southern Spain). Field surveys carried out in 15 forest areas showed that diseased branches were associated with the presence of strips of necrotic bark. Botryosphaeria dothidea was consistently obtained from the necrotic tissues. Growth of isolates on potato dextrose agar was very rapid at high temperatures, with a growth rate of 25 mm day −1 at the optimum temperature (about 28°C). Germination rate of conidia increased with temperature, with the optimum temperature being over 35°C. Pathogenicity tests were conducted on cut branches, 3‐year‐old seedlings and mature plants in the field. In every situation, disease symptoms were reproduced in the inoculated branches and Koch’s postulates were fulfilled. The results demonstrate the behaviour of B. dothidea as a primary pathogen of C. ladanifer . The present work constitutes the first description of fungal canker of C. ladanifer caused by B. dothidea , being the first report of a disease affecting this shrub species.