First report of the occurrence of Pestalotiopsis sp. on blueberry in Bulgaria – morphology and pathogenicity - (short communication)

Abstract

The cultivation of blueberry (Vaccinium sp.) in Bulgaria has increased in recent years, but the knowledge of its diseases is almost nonexistent. During monitoring for the sanitary status of blueberry crops in Southern Bulgaria (Plovdiv region), symptoms of stem cancer, twigs necrotic lesions, leaf spots and low vigour were observed on 3-year-old Duke cv. Four isolates were obtained from damaged stems and leaves and were single-spored. The isolates were recognized as Pestalotiopsis sp. according to the cultural characteristics of the fungal colony (colony color and the presence of fruiting bodies) and morphological characteristics of conidia (color, length, width, number and size of the apical and basal appendages). In a controlled experiment, the representative isolate was pathogenic to the Duke cv. Based on morphological characteristics and pathogenicity, this study is the first report of the Pestalotiopsis sp. associated with cancer stem and leaf spots on blueberries in Bulgaria.