Phytophthora palmivora, the Cause of Bud Rot in Oil Palm
Bud rot has caused major problems in the oil palm industry in the Americas for more than half a century. Bud rot, called “Pudricion del cogollo” (pc), of oil palm is a serious constraint to oil palm production in Colombia and in the neighboring countries Brazil, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Panama, Peru and Surinam. Until recently bud rot was blamed on a range of biotic and abiotic factors, however none of these culprits was unequivocally demonstrated to be the cause of bud rot. Over the past few years a detailed study by Cenipalma researchers in Colombia demonstrated that a species of Phytophthora was the cause of bud rot (Martínez et al., 2008; Sarria-Villa et al., 2008; Torres et al., 2010). Earlier attempts to isolate this pathogen had been confounded by difficulties encountered isolating Phytophthora palmivora from oil palm plant tissue compared to other host plant species. However, careful observation of the symptoms in the palm heart revealed that it was possible to detect the initial, cryptic, stages of infection. Following colonisation of enclosed leaf sheaths, the first external symptoms of the disease are small lesions on the youngest spear leaf caused by disintegration of the tissue between the veins. These symptoms are minor but once the pathogen starts moving down into the heart of the palm, towards the meristematic tissue, it starts moving towards neighbouring new young tissue, destroying more and more leaflets. Phytophthora structures such as chlamydospores and sporangia can be seen in and on the heart tissue at a young age. The presence of more lesions in the youngest spear leaves affects the development of new leaves. The affected tissue is often colonised by secondary pathogens and insects that are attracted to the rotting tissue, promoting damage to the meristematic area which may result in the death of the affected palm.
| Main Authors: | , , |
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| Format: | Digital revista |
| Language: | spa |
| Published: |
Fedepalma
2013
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| Online Access: | https://publicaciones.fedepalma.org/index.php/palmas/article/view/10671 |
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