Oak phytophthera found in other Ericaceae
- To: "m*@ucdavis.edu"
- Subject: Oak phytophthera found in other Ericaceae
- From: R* S*
- Date: Sat, 24 Feb 2001 09:30:16 -0800
For those of you interested in the new phytopthera affecting California
Quercus, it has now been found in another genus of the Ericaceae. It
had been seen before in some cultivated rhododendrons, and now has been
identified in Vaccinium ovatum (California huckleberry). It has been
quite virulent in 3 species of quercus, killing most of the populations
where it is present. It remains to be seen how vigorous it is in the
Ericaceae. It could have been there all along, not a serious threat,
and recently spread to oaks, or it could have spread from oaks (or
another host) to the Vaccinium. I must admit my first thought on
learning of the Vaccinium connection was that the price of my favorite
fruit, blueberries, would skyrocket if the disease is virulent among the
Ericaceae. However, since it could now possibly affect blueberries and
cranberries as well as rhododendrons, perhaps some money for research
will be forthcoming. I would expect there will be some new quarantines
coming for plants in the Ericaceae.
