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1. Late blight occurrence and LB severity by major production area in the country. What crops were affected (tomato, potato, others)? Disease sources (seed, cull piles, volunteer plants, soil)?

2001: Late blight infection was moderate in the potato fields. First symptoms appeared in July. In August the infection rate was moderate about 25 % and serious about 13 % of the potato area.

The occurrence of LB was moderate in the tomato fields. In July the infection was low about 31 % and moderate about 26 % of tomato fields. The infection rates were low on 31 % and moderate on 39 % of tomato fields in August.

2002: The occurrence of LB was low.

2. LB impact (foliar damage, yield losses, tuber rot occurrences)?  

In general, yield losses and tuber rot haven’t occurred in the potato fields due to the dry weather conditions in 2002.

3. Fungicide use (amounts, types, etc.)?

Farmers use contact fungicides (copper, mancozeb, chlorotalonil, fentinhydroxid, etc.) at the beginning of the season (about 40 days after planting). Later systemic fungicides (metalaxyl, cymoxanil, dimetomorf, efozit-Al) are used in combination with contact ones (in Hungary only these mixture type of fungicides are permitted in the case of systemic ingradients).

Number of sprays: 8-12 on irrigated fields and 4-6 on non-irrigated ones.

4. Other LB control measures (resistant cultivars, forecast systems, none)?

Measures almost all of the farmers use susceptible varieties. Disease forecasting network is working in the frame of Plant Protection Service. There are 20 Plant Protection Service Station in Hungary. Plant protection inspectors provide data’s about the disease risk and management for farmers.

Resistant potato varieties cultivated: White Lady

Source: Global Catalog of Late Blight Resistant Varieties: www.cipotato.org/gilb/Gilb_catalog/principal.htm

5. LB control effectiveness (fungicide or host resistance failures)?  

We don’t have reliable data about these failures.

6. Pathogen strains (mating type, fungicide resistance, virulence factors, etc)?  

In a study of isolates collected between 1991-1998 both A1 and A2 mating type were present. The ratios of the mating types A1 and A2 were 47 % and 53 % on potato and 21 % and 79 % on tomato respectively. 40 % of the investigated isolates were resistant to metalaxyl in vitro (30 % A1 and 10 % A2). All the isolates were homozygous (100/100) at the glucose-6-phosphate isomerase locus. At the peptidase locus 2 isolates were 83/96, 18 were 96/96, 10 were 96/100 and 6 were 100/100.

Regarding virulence, 4.2% of the twenty-four investigated isolates had two virulence factors, 16.7% had four, 25% had five, 29.1% had six, 20.8% had seven and 4.2% had eight. The most frequent virulence factors were 1, 3, 4 and 7. Virulence factors 6 and 9 were not detected. One exceptional isolate overcame 4 R-genes.

7. Disease risks and/or major needs?

The presence both A1 and A2 mating types, complexity of virulence phenotype, metalaxyl-resistance of isolates and genetic diversity of the Phytophthora infestans population lead to a continuously increasing importance of LB in Hungary. Changes in the P. infestans population may have serious effects on both control measures and breeding for resistance.

Major needs:

• Characterization a larger number of isolates occurring on both potato and tomato fields.

• Investigations for the occurrence of sexual reproduction of the pathogen.

• Development of LB forecast system and control methods.

• Investigations for the occurrence of fungicide resistance under natural conditions.

• Improvement of the effectiveness of the LB resistance-breeding program.

  8. Any publications on late blight in the country?  

  Nagy Z Á, Bakonyi J, Érsek T. 2003: Novel genotypes in Phytophthora infestans populations in Hungary. Acta Phytopathological Entomological Hungary 38: (in press).

  Bakonyi J, Láday M, Dula,T, Érsek T. 2002. Characterization of isolates of Phytophthora infestans from Hungary. European Journal of Plant Pathology 108:139–146.

  Bohar Gy, Bakonyi J, Dula T. 1999. New populations of Phytophthora infestans in Hungary, Növényvédelem, 35:301-306 (in Hungarian with English summary.)

  Bakonyi J and Érsek T. 1997. First report of the A2 mating type of Phytophthora infestans on potato in Hungary, Plant Disease 81:1094.

  9. Is tuber blight an increasing problem?

  Occassionally.

  10. Other comments

  Prepared by Zsolt Polgar, University of Veszprem, Georgikon Faculty of Agriculture Regional Potato Research Centre, Keszthely, Hungary. Email: polg-zs(at)georgikon.hu

  [2] Schepers, H T A M. 2003. The development and control of Phytophthora infestans in Europe in 2002. pp 9–22 in: Westerdijk C E and Schepers H T A M (eds), Proceedings of the Seventh Workshop of an European Network for development of an Integrated Control Strategy of potato late blight, 2–6, October 2002 , Pozan, Poland, PPO-Special Report no. 9. Applied Plant Research BV, Wageningen,etherlands. Information regarding the late blight epidemic in 2002 in Austria provided by E. Rauscher.