Influence of Surface-Disinfestation Procedures and Tissue Storage on Isolation of Cylindrocladium spp. from Leatherleaf Fern Fronds. A. R. Chase, Associate Professor of Plant Pathology, IFAS, University of Florida, Agricultural Research Center, Apopka 32703. Plant Dis. 68:514-516. Accepted for publication 28 December 1983. Copyright 1984 The American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/PD-68-514.

The effects of surface-disinfestation, exposure time, vacuum-infiltration, and preisolation storage conditions (moisture and temperature) on isolation of Cylindrocladium heptaseptatum and C. pteridis were determined. Increasing the surface-disinfestant (NaOCl) concentration from 0 to 2.6% decreased saprophyte recovery exponentially and increased recovery of Cylindrocladium spp. Exposure time (1–10 min) and vacuum-infiltration (81.3 kPa) did not influence recovery of Cylindrocladium spp., although higher exposure times sometimes decreased recovery of saprophytes. Storage of tissue in plastic bags increased recovery of Cylindrocladium spp. and decreased saprophyte recovery compared with storage in paper bags. Storage of tissue at 5–6 C reduced recovery of the pathogens but increased recovery of saprophytes compared with storage at 23–25 C. Cylindrocladium spp. recovery decreased exponentially (y = 5.4x^–0.24) as storage time increased from 0 to 14 days.