ISHS Acta Horticulturae 590: IX International Workshop on Fire Blight
FIRE BLIGHT IN THE REPUBLIC OF MOLDOVA: PRESENT STATUS OF ITS OCCURRENCE AND CHARACTERISTICS OF ITS PATHOGEN ERWINIA AMYLOVORA |
| Authors: | A.N. Nicolaev, P. Laux, W. Zeller |
| Keywords: | Fire Blight, Moldova, virulent strains, PCR, resistance |
| Abstract:
The first fire blight outbreaks in the Republic of Moldova were recorded in 1996 and 1997 when massive infections led to total destruction of apple and pear orchards throughout the country. Extensive eradication of infected plants was employed during the following years to counteract epidemic spread of the disease. Despite these phytosanitary measures, local outbreaks of the disease have been reported consistently from numerous fruit growing areas. The presence of the pathogen in wood samples from different locations was investigated by dilution plating on Miller Schroth Agar and subsequent pathogenicity testing of pure cultures on immature pear fruits. Bacterial isolates causing the formation of ooze were confirmed as Erwinia amylovora by PCR. No significant difference in virulence of Moldovian and German isolates of E. amylovora was observed in inoculation experiments with quince seedlings. A resistance evaluation of five apple varieties by artificial inoculation under field conditions in Moldova revealed the cultivar 'Alpinist' as most susceptible to fire blight. | |
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