St. Paul, Minnesota
July 19, 2007
Robert Gilbertson, plant pathology
professor at the University of
California, Davis, will provide the update on the status of
Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) after it was found for the
first time in California. The update is part of a news
conference on plant diseases that are of importance to
California’s economy and agriculture, to be held Monday, July 30
at 11 a.m. PST at the Town and Country Resort and Convention
Center in San Diego, CA.
In March 2007, the destructive virus was detected in tomato
plants and whiteflies from a greenhouse in California’s Imperial
Valley. Tomato yellow leaf curl virus is distributed primarily
by the whitefly, Bemisia tabaci. It spreads quickly from plant
to plant within minutes; especially if the whitefly population
is high.
"This is undeniably the worst tomato virus there is," said
Gilbertson. In other areas where the virus is present, yield
losses as great as 100 percent have been reported. This disease
poses a significant threat as California is one of the main
producers of processing and fresh tomatoes in the United States.
The telltale sign of TYLCV is the yellowing and upward curling
of the leaves. As the virus progresses, the plant becomes
stunted and it causes the flowers of the tomato plants to die
and fall off, rendering the plant unable to produce fruit.
The good news is that the whitefly that carries the virus does
not do well in colder areas, such as in Northern California, the
state’s primary tomato growing area. "This gives us hope that we
have this under control, but when the worst tomato virus gets
introduced in the California, it is a serious issue. "We are
fortunate that we caught it as soon as we did," Gilbertson said.
Plant pathologists are continuing to monitor for the virus and
ask all tomato growers, from backyard gardeners to commercial
growers, to look for symptoms of the virus. A flyer showing
symptoms of the virus is available at
www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/r783103311.html. If symptoms are
detected, growers are asked to send samples to their local
University of California Cooperative Extension office for
testing. If the virus were to spread and become established
within the state, management strategies such as planting
resistant varieties and implementing tomato-free periods can be
implemented to minimize the virus’ impact.
The American Phytopathological
Society (APS) is a non-profit, professional scientific
organization. The research of the organization’s 5,000 worldwide
members advances the understanding of the science of plant
pathology and its application to plant health. SON is an
international organization formed to advance the science of
nematology in both its fundamental and economic aspects. |
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