Strawberry Anthracnose: Detection and Survival of Colletotrichum acutatum in Soil

Abstract

(...)Isolates of C.a. from soil were culturally similar to isolates from plant tissue and were equally pathogenic in assays using detached fruit. Soil naturally infested with C.a. initiated disease development on strawberry plants in the greenhouse. C.a. survived in buried strawberry tissue for 9 mo, but soil population densities gradually declined over an 11-mo period. Results suggest that soilborne propagules, especially those in soil attached to planting stock, may be a source of inoculum in California