Twig blight and defoliation caused by Colletotrichum horii in persimmons in Brazil

Abstract

Persimmon anthracnose has been a great concern to Brazilian producers. This study aimed to identify and characterized the causal species from Brazilian persimmons by assessing morphological and molecular characteristics and pathogenicity tests. Five fungal isolates obtained from diseased twigs and fruits were identified as Colletotrichum horii, based on morphological characteristics and nucleotide sequences of ITS region. Inoculation tests revealed that the fungal isolates caused necrotic spots followed by defoliation of leaves, blight of twigs and buds of potted persimmon plants.