Forest Pathology (2019) 49 (4 - e12533)

Seçil Akilli Simsek, Yakup Zekai Katircioglu, Çigdem Ulubas Serçe, Deniz Çakar, Daniel Rigling and Salih Maden (2019)
Phytophthora species associated with dieback of sweet chestnut in Western Turkey
Forest Pathology 49 (4 - e12533)
Abstract: Sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) is an important tree species in the Marmara and Aegean regions of Turkey as these two regions produce the great majority of edible nuts, especially those used for marron glacé production. Chestnut forests and orchards in these regions showing severe dieback symptoms not associated with chestnut blight were investigated to determine the role of Phytophthora spp. in the decline syndrome. Soil samples were collected from around 108 symptomatic chestnut trees at 29 sites and Phytophthora spp. isolated using soil baiting technique and selective medium. Species isolated were identified by cultural characteristics and ITS sequencing. Phytophthora x cambivora was the dominant species detected in 13 sites, followed by P. cinnamomi (5 sites), P. plurivora (3 sites) and P. cryptogea (1 site). Phytophthora x cambivora was present in both regions, while P. cinnamomi was found only in the Marmara region in coastal areas around Istanbul. When inoculated at the stem bases of 3-year-old chestnut saplings, P. cinnamomi produced significantly longer necrotic lesions (7.8–12.0 cm) than P. x cambivora (2.6–6.3 cm) by 12 days after inoculation. Phytophthora plurivora was the least aggressive species causing only small lesions. Phytophthora cryptogea, which represents the first record on chestnut in Turkey, produced intermediate sized lesions in between P. x cambivora and P. plurivora. These results indicate that P. x cambivora and in some areas P. cinnamomi play major roles in the observed dieback of sweet chestnut in western Turkey.
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Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Çigdem Ulubas Serçe, Daniel Rigling, Salih Maden

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
surveys/sampling/distribution

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Phytophthora cinnamomi	Chestnut (Castanea)	Turkey
	Phytophthora cryptogea	Chestnut (Castanea)	Turkey
	Phytophthora cambivora	Chestnut (Castanea)	Turkey