Properties of Asparagus Virus 1 Isolated from Washington State Asparagus. W. E. Howell, Research Technologist, Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center, Prosser, WA 99350. G. I. Mink, Plant Pathologist, Irrigated Agriculture Research and Extension Center, Prosser, WA 99350. Plant Dis. 69:1044-1046. Accepted for publication 24 June 1985. Copyright 1985 The American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/PD-69-1044.

A flexuous rod-shaped virus isolated from asparagus (Asparagus officinalis) in Washington State was identified as asparagus virus 1 (AV-1). Antiserum was prepared that reacted readily with filamentous particles from extracts of AV-1-infected asparagus in 'decoration' serology. The virus also reacted strongly against antisera of AV-1 from Japan and Europe, but in cross-reactivity tests, it was serologically distinct from iris mild mosaic virus. The virus induced pinwheel inclusions. Filamentous particles from purified preparations had a modal length of 741 nm, a nucleic acid content of 6% (as estimated from a 260/280 ratio of 1.2), and a sedimentation constant of 1.46. AV-1 spread rapidly in the field, with most new infections occurring in either mid-June or early September during both 1979 and 1980.