Tip Dieback of Mango (Mangifera indica) Caused by Botryosphaeria ribis. Leandro J. Ramos, University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Tropical Research and Education Center, 18905 S.W. 280 Street, Homestead 33031. S. P. Lara, R. T. McMillan, Jr., and K. R. Narayanan. University of Florida, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, Tropical Research and Education Center, 18905 S.W. 280 Street, Homestead 33031. Plant Dis. 75:315-318. Accepted for publication 17 August 1990. Copyright 1991 The American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/PD-75-0315.

The conidial stage of Botryosphaeria ribis was isolated from diseased mango trees (Mangifera indica) and found to be pathogenic in mango by wound inoculation. The fungus produced dark mycelia and did not sporulate under most conditions but formed chlamydospores and immature conidial initials. In the vicinity of the inoculated stem scars, the fungus produced stromatic pycnidia, which yielded hyaline, one-celled pycnidiospores. On oatmeal agar, the dark mycelium also produced stromatic pycnidia. Hyphae were observed in sections of diseased tissues and abundant tyloses were found inside the xylem vessels. Several other fungi, including Fusarium equiseti, were occasionally isolated from mango hosts showing dieback symptoms, but they did not cause dieback in mango. This is the first report of F. equiseti in this host in the continental United States.

Keyword(s): Ascomycotina, Botryodiplodia theobromae, Colletotrichum sp., Diplodia sp., Macrophoma sp., Oidium sp., Pestalotia sp., Physalospora sp.