Incidence and etiology of postharvest diseases of fresh fruit of date palm (Phoenix dactylifera L.) in the grove of Elx (Spain)
The incidence and etiology of postharvest diseases affecting fresh date fruit in the palm grove of Elx (Spain) were determined under local environmental conditions. Latent and wound pathogens were assessed for two consecutive seasons on fruit of two important commercial cultivars, ‘Boufeggous’ and...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | article |
| Language: | Inglés |
| Published: |
Mediterranean Phytopathological Union
2020
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11939/6720 https://oajournals.fupress.net/index.php/pm/article/view/5699 |
| Summary: | The incidence and etiology of postharvest diseases affecting fresh date fruit in the palm grove of Elx
(Spain) were determined under local environmental conditions. Latent and wound pathogens were assessed for
two consecutive seasons on fruit of two important commercial cultivars, ‘Boufeggous’ and ‘Medjool’, grown in
different orchards. Healthy dates were either surface-disinfected or artificially wounded in the rind and placed in
humid chambers at 20ºC for up to 7 weeks. Irrespective of cultivar, season, orchard, and type of infection, the most
important causal agents of disease were Penicillium expansum, Alternaria alternata, Cladosporium cladosporioides, and
a black aspergillus species belonging to the Aspergillus niger clade. These fungi were identified by macroscopic and
microscopic morphology and/or DNA amplification and sequencing. Their pathogenicity was demonstrated by
fulfilling Koch’s postulates. Disease development at 20 and 5ºC was characterized on artificially inoculated dates |
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