Rotten pears were examined and classified in 4 groups according to the type of rot observed: a) "Elack" rot; b) Penicillium rot; c) Botrytis rot and d) "Mixture" rot, presented in accordance to their importance. Diseases tissues collected from these categories were cultured in PDA. The following species ranked according to frequency were obtained from culture isolations: 1) Penicillium expansum (Lk.) Thom., 2) Botrytis cinerea Pers. ex Fries., 3) AlternarÃa alternata (Fr.) Keissler., 4) Penicillium cyclopium Westling, 5) Stemphylium botryosum Wallr., 6) Penicillium wortmanni Klocker, 7) Rhizopus stolonifer (Fr.) Lind., 8) Botrytis sp., 9) Cladosporium herbarum (Pers.) Link. ex Fries., 10) Pleospora herbarum (Pers.) . Rab., 11) Penicillium sp., 12) Ulocladium atrum Prenss., 13) Pestalotia hartigii Tub., 14) Corticium centrifugum (Leb.) Bres., 15) AlternarÃa tenuissima (Fr.) Wiltsch., 16) Alternaria sp., 17) Cladosporium cladosporioides (Fr.) de Vries., 18) Epicoccum purpurascens Ehrenb. ex Schlecht., (19) Gliocladium roseum (Link.?) Bainier, 20) Fusarium roseum Snyder & Hansen, 21) TrÃchoderma viride Pers. ex Fries., 22) Sporendonema sp.?, 23) Fusarium oxysporum Schlecht., 24) Oidiodendron sp.? Pathogenicity was tested under cold storage conditions (0-1°C). Species 1, 2, 5 and 8 were the highest pathogenicity species, 4, 6, 7 and 17 caused no infection while the remainder species were only pathogenic on wounded fruit. Pathogenicity was also. tested under storage at 18-20°C. All species produced infection on. wounded pears while only species 1, 2, 5, 7, 8, 9, 18, 21 and 22 attacked healthy fruit. |