S. Swain
and M.M. Garbelotto. California Agriculture 69(4):237-241. DOI:
10.3733/ca.v069n04p237. October-December 2015.
Phytophthora ramorum,
the causal agent of the disease sudden oak death has killed millions of trees
on the north coast of California. An introduced pathogen both in North America
and Europe, it was discovered in California in 1995. P. ramorum often
forms lethal bark lesions on oaks (Quercus spp.) and the related
tanoak (Notholithocarpus densiflorus), but it spreads by spores formed
on foliar lesions on scores of other plant species, including common landscape
plants. New foliar hosts have been discovered annually since 2002, and the
symptoms can vary substantially from host to host. The disease
keeps spreading to new locations through limited-distance natural dispersal,
infected nursery stock and perhaps through other yet unknown means To help
prevent the spread of the pathogen to new localities, movement of infected
plant material is highly regulated. Debris from infected plants is almost
certainly taken to local composting facilities, which are subject to
restrictions on shipping product out of the quarantine area if found to be not
pathogen-free. Finished compost has a
well-established history of suppressing a variety of plant pathogens when
incorporated into potting mixes or planted into soil. The survival of P. ramorum in finished compost, however, had not previously been
evaluated. The purpose of this research
was to address the question of whether P. ramorum may have a
high survival rate in finished compost if reached by dispersal propagules that
may be transported by wind or water from fresh green waste or infectious plants
within or near composting facilities.
The results show that P. ramorum may be present and
infectious if introduced into finished compost, and that variations in compost
characteristics appear to influence survival rates.
For the complete article see: https://ucanr.edu/repositoryfiles/cav6904p237-159798.pdf
