Outbreaks of Alternaria Brown Spot of Citrus in Brazil and Argentina

Alternaria alternata (Fr.) Keissler causes lesions on leaves, twigs, and fruit and reduces yield and fruit quality of many tangerines (Citrus reticulata) and their hybrids (2). Severe outbreaks of Alternaria brown spot were observed on 'Murcott' tangor (Citrus reticulata × Citrus sinensis) trees in southern São Paulo, southern Minas Gerais states in Brazil, and in Misiones and Corrientes provinces in Argentina. A single diseased 'Fortune' tangerine tree was observed in a grove in Misiones. On young leaves, brown-to-black lesions often expanded to cover large parts of the leaf, causing abscission of young shoots and dieback of twigs. Lesions were often surrounded by yellow halos. On fruit, dark specks from 0.2 to 0.5 cm were observed, and severe infection caused premature fruit abscission. Isolations were made on potato dextrose agar (PDA) after surface sterilization of leaf and fruit tissues in 1.5% sodium hypochlorite for 1 min. Plates were incubated at 27°C in the dark for 1 week. Isolated colonies were olive brown to black, and the fungus was stimulated to form conidia by scraping the surface of the mycelium. The pathogen was a typical small-spored Alternaria species, and the morphological characteristics of the conidia and conidiophores fit the description of A. alternata. Inoculation of three detached young shoots of 'Murcott' with a conidial suspension (10⁵ conidia per ml) confirmed pathogenicity of three isolates obtained from widely separated groves in southern and eastern São Paulo State in Brazil and one from Misiones Province in Argentina. A control treatment with an equal number of shoots was sprayed with distilled water only. After 48 h, all isolates caused dark lesions on the leaves, characteristic of the disease. Symptoms were observed on inoculated, but not on control shoots. Koch's postulates were satisfied by reisolation of the fungus from symptomatic tissue in all cases. Although Alternaria brown spot was reported previously in neighboring Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on 'Dancy' and 'Ponkan' tangerines (1), serious disease problems now occur on 'Murcott', an important commercial variety in the major production area in Brazil. To our knowledge, this is the first report of Alternaria brown spot in Argentina. References: (1) A. de Goes et al. Fitopatologia Brasileira 26(Suppl.):386, 2001. (2) L. W. Timmer et al. Pages 19-21 in: Compendium of Citrus Diseases. 2nd ed. L. W. Timmer, S. M. Garnsey, and J. H. Graham, eds. The American Phytopathological Society, St. Paul, MN, 2000.