Canker disease of African mahogany in Para State, Brazil

Abstract

Canker symptoms were observed in African mahogany plantations in Dom Eliseu County, Para State, Brazil. Fungi associated with symptomatic tissues were identified as Lasiodiplodia theobromae and Fusarium subglutinans. Pure cultures of these fungi were tested for pathogenicity on healthy young plants of African mahogany. Only L. theobromae produced canker, using wound inoculation technique and high humidity. The confirmation of L. theobromae as the causal agent of canker came after the reisolation of this fungus from inoculated plants in greenhouse, concluding the first verification of Koch´s postulates for this pathosystem.