Evaluation of single-node plantlets as a model system for grapevine trunk diseases

Abstract

Single-node plantlets were evaluated as a model system for experiments on grapevine trunk diseases. Experiments were conducted to determine how to grow the plantlets, how Botryosphaeria sp. and Eutypa lata symptoms were expressed in the plantlets compared with field-grown plants, and how the detached single-node plantlets (from living canes) responded compared with canes attached to vines under controlled conditions. Single-node plantlets could be grown in distilled water for up to 6 months. Under controlled conditions, significantly longer lesions formed on the single-node plantlets than on attached canes, suggesting that the single-node system may be more sensitive to infection than whole vines. The system shows promise for use in initial experiments on trunk diseases, before field experiments are conducted, but further work is required to validate the method.