This study identified the main pathogens causing fruit rots of mature peaches in northern Greece, the major peach producing area of Greece. The brown rot pathogen Monilinia laxa was responsible for approximately 70% and 78% of rotted peaches in 2005 and 2006 respectively. Serious damage (up to 5%) was also caused with the fungus Phomopsis amygdali. Other pathogens isolated from rotted peaches at a low percentage were Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus niger,
The effect of external factors on the rooting of hardwood cuttings of the ‘Gisela 5’ cherry rootstock (Prunus cerasus × Prunus canescens) was studied. Experiments were conducted with cuttings of different lengths (15, 20, 25, and 30 cm) and diameters (6 to 8, 9 to 11, and 12 to 14 mm) and with different indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) concentrations (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, and 6 g·L−1). Significantly improved rooting was achieved using cuttings 20 cm long and 9 to 11 mm in diameter collected in November or March from the upper part of the parent shoot and subsequently quick-dipped in 1 g·L−1 IBA solution. Cuttings placed vertically in perlite:peat (1:1) or perlite with bottom heat gave the best rooting percentage. No effect on callusing or rooting of cuttings was found after incubation of cutting in suspensions of Agrobacterium rubi. If the optimal combination of factors is selected, ‘Gisela 5’ can be propagated from hardwood cuttings with a rooting efficiency of ≈50%.
Shoot blights and fruit rots comprise the most serious diseases of peaches in Greece. In this study, the importance of the fungus Neofusicoccum parvum as a casual agent of a fruit rot and shoot blight of peach trees in Greece was investigated. This pathogen was isolated from both immature and mature peach fruit of the cultivar "Catherine" and later on from mature fruit of the peach cultivars "Andross", "RedHaven", "Sun Crest" and "Sun Cloud". In the first year of investigation, N. parvum was found causing preharvest fruit rot and shoot blights of peach trees only at the location "AmmosMesi-Meliki Verias" in the prefecture of Imathia (the main peach production area of Greece) at incidences of 30 and 8%, respectively. However, in 2006 N. parvum was isolated from more locations such as Diavatos, Veria, Kopanos and Agia Marina in the prefecture of Imathia, but only at less than 3% of the total surveyed rotted peach fruit and blighted shoots. The pathogen overwintered as sub-epidermal pycnidia in blighted shoots or mummified fruit that remained on peach trees. This study also showed that the optimum temperature for mycelial growth and conidial germination of N. parvum was 25ºC. Pathogenicity tests using peach fruit showed that isolates of N. parvum and Diplodia seriata (isolated from pistachio grown in the same region) showed no significant differences in their virulence. In laboratory inoculation tests using detached shoots from 25 peach and nectarine cultivars, N. parvum isolates obtained from rotted peaches caused different size cankers on these cultivars. The cultivar Big Top was the most susceptible while the cultivar Maria Bianca the least susceptible.
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