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Disease Note

Outbreak of Alternaria alternate Causing Fruit Rot of Tomato in Upstate New York. T. A. Zitter, Departments of Plant Pathology and Vegetable Crops, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853. H. C. Wien, Departments of Plant Pathology and Vegetable Crops, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853. Plant Dis. 68:628. Accepted for publication 27 April 1984. Copyright 1984 The American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/PD-68-628g.

In 1983, Alternaria black mold caused by Alternaria alternata (Fr.) Keissler (= A. tenuis Nees) produced widespread damage to mature green and ripe fresh market tomatoes (Lycopersicon esrulentum Mill.) in upstate New York. On ripe fruit, circular to irregular-shaped sunken lesions up to 13 mm long and covered by a gray membrane appeared on shoulders and stem ends. Differences in susceptibility among cultivars were noted in replicated test plots in Ithaca and in growers' fields. Susceptible cultivars included FloraDade; Castlehy 1035, 1060, and 1066; and HXP 2791. Slight speckling was noted on HXP 2790 and 2792; Castlehy lines 1041, 1050, 1054, 1065, and 1070; and the cultivars Celebrity, Independence, Cavalier, Red Express, Mountain Pride, and Count 11. Susceptibility to black mold and early blight (A. solani Sorauer) was not correlated, and maneb sprays applied to control early blight failed to control black mold.

Reference: Pearson, R. C., and Hall, D. H. Phytopathology 65:1352, 1975.