Crops
Didymella bryoniae (Fuckel) Rehm, (1881)
Black rots on fruits
Gummy cankers on stem
- classification : Fungi, Ascomycota, Dothideomycetes, Pleosporomycetidae, Pleosporales, Incertae sedis
- anamorphe: Phoma cucurbitacearum (Fr.) Sacc., (1884)
- synonymies : Didymella melonis Pass., (1891) ; Ascochyta cucumis Fautrey & Roum., (1891) ; Mycosphaerella citrullina (C.O. Sm.) Grossenb., (1909) ; Mycosphaerella melonis (Pass.) W.F. Chiu & J.C. Walker, (1949)...
- English names: Gummy stem blight *, Black rot
* The gummy canker of Cucurbitaceae, is not caused by a single fungus as has long been believed, but by at least three: Staganosporopsis cucurbitacearum (syn. Didymella bryoniae ), Staganosporopsis citrulli , and Staganosporopsis caricae .
These 3 species reveal a range of hosts common in Cucurbitaceae ( S. caricae also attacks papaya), but their global distributions appear to be different. It would be advisable to identify more precisely the nature of the species or species prevalent in France.
Note that other fungi belonging to the genus Phoma, such as P. exigua , have also been associated with the symptoms of "Gummy stem blight" in the United States in particular.
This fungus is capable of attacking all the aerial organs of cucurbits (leaves, stems and fruits) causing two main symptoms: more or less gummy stem cankers and / or black rot of the fruits.
Gummy cankers on stems have been reported in a large number of countries , for example posing a major threat to melon crops in certain production areas in the United States. The same is true of watermelon ( Citrullus lanatus ) around the world, particularly in Brazil.
The black fruit rot is a widespread disease; its impact is especially remarkable on cucumbers during cultivation and storage, and on pumpkins and squash which are often kept for long months in winter. Note that this disease is a serious threat to the pumpkin industry in the United States.
D. bryoniae has been present in France for many years. In our country, this fungus has long found favorable conditions for its development only under shelter, because it particularly likes the hot and humid climates of these cultural contexts. It therefore only represented a real danger for cucumber crops, although it could also be observed on melon, zucchini and squash . The situation has changed somewhat in recent years as significant attacks have been observed, particularly on melon stems in the open field in western France.