Survival of Diaporthe phaseolorum var. caulivora (causal agent of soybean stem canker) artificially inoculated in different crop residues

Stem canker caused by Diaporthe phaseolorum var. caulivora is an important disease of soybean in Argentina. The objective of this study was to determine its survival ability in artificially infested straw under laboratory and field conditions. In laboratory, stem pieces of soybean, maize, sorghum, sunflower, potato and wheat were autoclaved, placed in petri dishes on Potato Dextrose Agar and Water Agar, and inoculated with a 7-day-old pathogen culture. All crop residues were colonized and produced perithecia. Debris artificially infested with D. phaseolorum var. caulivora were placed in plastic net bags and transferred to an un-cropped area in a field plot at the University of Buenos Aires. Straws were left on the ground from winter to spring season in both 2007 and 2008 years. After 6 months abundant perithecia were developed in all straws. However, a higher number of perithecia on soybean and sunflower compared to maize, sorghum and potato was determined. These findings suggest that other crops, besides soybean, could maintain alive the inoculum of Diaporthe phaseolorum var. caulivora from soybean for at least 6-7 months.