Between 2000 and 2020, canker diseases of nut and stone fruit trees have become very widespread and severe in California. This study determined the effects of temperature on the development of canker-causing pathogens of almond and prune. Five pathogen taxa, Botryosphaeria dothidea, Cytospora leucostoma, Diaporthe (Phomopsis) neotheicola, Lasiodiplodia citricola, and Neofusicoccum mediterraneum, were used. Colony growth on medium and canker lesion development on detached shoots were measured at 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, and 35°C. The effects of temperature on colony growth differed among different pathogen taxa, although 25°C was the optimal temperature for most of the pathogens tested. The patterns of lesion growth as response to temperature were different among the different pathogens and tree crops. On almond, the highest growth rates appeared at 30°C for B. dothidea and L. citricola, but at 20°C for N. mediterraneum. The growth rates for C. leucostoma were lower than those of the other three pathogen taxa, with the highest rates recorded at 25°C. However, on prune, C. leucostoma showed greater lesion growth rates at different temperatures than the other pathogen taxa and maximum growth at 30 to 35°C. Similar trends were observed for L. citricola. The growth rates of B. dothidea and N. mediterraneum were comparatively lower than those of C. leucostoma and L. citricola.
Keywords: climate/weather effects; epidemiology; fruit; fungi; tree fruits.