Abstract
Botrytis cinerea is a major disease of blackcurrants causing premature flower and fruit drop in New Zealand. Because of the risk of fungicide residue from conventional methods, there is a need for the development of non-chemical control strategies as part of a sustainable disease control programme. Potential sources of Botrytis cinerea inoculum for infection of blackcurrant flowers were sampled in five blackcurrant properties in the South Island of New Zealand during dormancy and spring of 2006 and 2007. Tissues investigated were necrotic debris immediately beneath the plant, necrotic growing tips of 1-year-old canes, dead cane of previous seasons growth still attached to the base of the plant, canes damaged by harvesting or pruning, and canes damaged by currant clearwing (Synanthedon tipuliformis). The mean number of each tissue type within a plant varied considerably, both within a property and between different properties. Necrotic debris immediately beneath the plant and necrotic cane tips were shown to be the main sources of inoculum. Knowledge of the main sources of inoculum is an important first step towards the development of new, non-chemical control strategies, which are discussed in this context.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aitken AG, Hewett EW (2009) New Zealand Horticulture FreshFacts. Sector Profiles. The New Zealand Institute for Plant and Food Research Ltd, 12–13.
de Lapeyre de Bellaire L, Chillet M, Dubois C, Mourichon X (2000) Importance of different sources of inoculum and dispersal methods of conidia of Colletotrichum musae, the causal agent of banana anthracnose, for fruit contamination. Plant Pathol 49:782–790
Elad Y, Steward A (2004) Microbial control of Botrytis spp. In: Elad Y, Williamson B, Tudzynski P, Delen N (eds) Botrytis: biology, pathology or control. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Netherlands, pp 223–241
Elmer PAG, Michailides TJ (2004) Epidemiology of Botrytis cinerea in orchard and vine crops. In: Elad Y, Williamson B, Tudzynski P, Delen N (eds) Botrytis: Biology, pathology and control. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Netherlands, pp 243–272
Elmer PAG, Reglinski T (2006) Biosuppression of Botrytis cinerea in grapes. Plant Pathol 55:155–177
Elmer PAG, Reglinski T, Wood PN, Hill RA, Marsden SM, Parry F, Taylor JT (2003) Suppression of Botrytis in grapes using a combination of elicitors and fungal antagonists. In Proceedings of the 8th International Congress of Plant Pathology, Christchurch, New Zealand (Abstract 43)
Holb IJ (2006) Effect of six sanitation treatments on leaf litter density, ascospore production of Venturia inaequalis and scab incidence in integrated and organic apple orchards. Eur J Plant Pathol 115:293–307
Jacometti MA, Wratten SD, Walter M (2010) Review: alternatives to synthetic fungicides for Botrytis cinerea management in vineyards. Aust J Grape Wine Res 16:154–172
Jermini M, Jelmini G, Gessler C (1986) Control of Botrytis cinerea on Merlot grapevine in Ticino. Role of latent infections. Rev Suisse Vitic Arboric Hortic 18(3):161–166
Kohl J, Gerlagh M, de Haas BH, Krijger MC (1998) Biological control of Botrytis cinerea in cyclamen with Ulocladium atrum and Gliocladium roseum under commercial growing conditions. Phytopathology 88:568–575
McNicol RJ, Williamson B, Young K (1989) Ethylene production by blackcurrant flowers infected with Botrytis cinerea. Acta Horticult 262:209–215
Punithalingam E, Holliday P (1973) Botryosphaeria ribis. In: IMI descriptions of fungi and bacteria’. 40, Sheet 395. CAB International, UK
Reglinski T, Elmer PAG, Taylor JT, Parry FJ, Marsden R, Wood PN (2005) Suppression of Botrytis bunch rot in Chardonnay grapevines by induction of host resistance and fungal antagonism. Australian Plant Pathol 34:481–488
Sutton DK, MacHardy WE, Lord WG (2000) Effects of shredding or treating apple leaf litter with urea on ascospore dose of Venturia inaequalis and disease buildup. Plant Dis 84:1319–1326
Walter M, Boyd-Wilson KSH, Stanley J, Harris-Virgin P, Morgan C, Pyke NB (1997) Epidemiology of Botrytis cinerea in boysenberry (Rubus spp.). In Proceedings of the 50th New Zealand Plant Protection Conference, pp 93–100
Walter M, Harris-Virgin P, Waipara NW, Stanley J, Boyd-Wilson KSH, Morgan C, Langford GI (2004) From the laboratory to the field: litter management for control of Botrytis cinerea in boysenberry gardens. Fruits 59(4):291–299
Walter M, Obanor FO, Smith JT, Ford C, Boyd-Wilson KSH, Harris-Virgin P, Langford G (2007) Timing of fungicide application for Botrytis cinerea control in blackcurrant (Ribes nigrum). New Zeal Plant Protect 60:114–122
Xu X, Robinson JD, Berrie AM (2009) Infection of blackcurrant flowers and fruits by Botrytis cinerea in relation to weather conditions and fruit age. Crop Prot 28:407–413
Acknowledgements
Our thanks go to the growers who allowed this research on their properties. Also, thanks to Drs Richard Falloon and Philip Elmer for revision of the manuscript. This research was funded by Blackcurrant Growers New Zealand Ltd and the New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry (MAF) through a Sustainable Farming Fund grant (SFF Grant 06/007).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Electronic supplementary material
Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.
ESM 1
(DOCX 19.4 kb)
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Boyd-Wilson, K., Obanor, F., Butler, R.C. et al. Sources of Botrytis cinerea inoculum for flower infection in blackcurrants in New Zealand. Australasian Plant Pathol. 42, 27–32 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13313-012-0149-z
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13313-012-0149-z