Recent incidence of collar canker and dieback of tea (Camellia sinensis) caused by Fusarium solani species complex in Sri Lanka

Abstract

A collar canker and dieback disease of tea has recently emerged in Sri Lanka. Isolation from cankers consistently yielded fusaria. Morphological characters and ITS and tef1 combined sequence analysis identified the selected isolates as members of Fusarium solani Species Complex Clade 3. Artificial inoculation to young and mature tea plants confirmed pathogenicity.