Author(s):
1. Milica Zlatković , University of Novi Sad, Institute of Lowland Forestry and Environment, , Serbia
2. Michael J Wingfield , Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (F, South Africa
3. Fahimeh Jami , Department of Microbiology and Plant Pathology, Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (F, South Africa
4. Bernard Slippers , Department of Genetics, FABI, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa

Abstract:
The Botryosphaeriaceae (Ascomycota: Botryosphaeriales) represents a well-known family of endophytes and fungal pathogens of trees. This study aimed to consider the host range and distribution of these fungi by sampling diseased ornamental and forest trees and shrubs in Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina, spanning a Mediterranean and a Continental climatic region. Ten species of the Botryosphaeriaceae were identified and with the exception of Sphaeropsis visci and Phaeobotryon cupressi, which occurred on one host, all the species occurred on two or more hosts. Phaeobotryon cupressi was present only in the Mediterranean region and S. visci, Dothiorella sp., Dothiorella sarmentorum and Diplodia seriata were found only in the Continental region. Pathogenicity tests were conducted on seedlings of 27 tree species and cut branches of six tree species from which the Botryosphaeriaceae were isolated. In addition, seedlings of Pinus patula and Eucalyptus grandis were also inoculated as hosts from which these isolates were not isolated. Inoculations showed that with exception of S. visci, P. cupressi and Dothiorella sp. all the rest of these fungi are not host specific, causing disease on various tree species, including those from which they have not been isolated. The results suggest that a combination of environmental and host factors affect the diversity and distribution of the Botryosphaeriaceae in the Western Balkans

Key words:
Botryosphaeriales, host range, generalist pathogen, co-infection

Thematic field:
Forest protection

Date of abstract submission:
23.10.2017.

Conference:
Šumarska nauka u funkciji održivog razvoja šumarstva
25 godina šumarstva Republike Srpske