Location: Crop Diseases, Pests and Genetics Research
Title: Infection of blueberry cultivar Emerald with a California grapevine isolate of Xylella fastidiosa and acquisition by glassy-winged sharpshooterAuthor
Submitted to: American Phytopathological Society Abstracts
Publication Type: Abstract Only Publication Acceptance Date: 5/9/2019 Publication Date: 8/3/2019 Citation: Burbank, L.P., Sisterson, M.S., O'Leary, M.L. 2019. Infection of blueberry cultivar Emerald with a California grapevine isolate of Xylella fastidiosa and acquisition by glassy-winged sharpshooter. American Phytopathological Society Abstracts. Presented at the American Phytopathological Society meeting, Aug 3-7, 2019, Cleveland, Ohio. Interpretive Summary: Technical Abstract: Bacterial leaf scorch disease caused by Xylella fastidiosa (Xf) occurs in southern highbush blueberry varieties in the southeastern United States. However, blueberry cultivar susceptibility to Xf is variable and these interactions are often specific to the pathogen strain. In the San Joaquin Valley of California where Pierce’s disease in grapevines caused by Xf subsp. fastidiosa has been problematic over the last twenty years, blueberry acreage of southern highbush cultivars is expanding, but very little is known concerning the potential for spread of Xf from grape to blueberry in this area. Glassy-winged sharpshooter (Homalodiscus vitripennis), a major vector of Xf in the San Joaquin Valley is known to feed on blueberry suggesting potential for emergence of bacterial leaf scorch in California if susceptible blueberry cultivars are planted near Xf-infected grapevines. Experimental inoculations showed that a California Pierce’s disease strain of Xf subsp. fastidiosa (Bakersfield-1) causes disease in blueberry cultivar Emerald, and glassy-winged sharpshooter was able to acquire Xf Bakersfield-1 from artificially inoculated blueberry plants under laboratory conditions. The possibility for spread of Xf between blueberries and nearby vineyards has implications for area-wide disease and vector control in the San Joaquin Valley and other regions where these two crops are grown. |