Palm diseases in Central America
M. M. ROCA (1). (1) Zamorano University, Tegucigalpa, Honduras
Cyclic epidemics of coconut and other palm diseases have been recorded in Central America. The most notable one is coconut Lethal Yellowing (LY) that has affected the region for more than a century. LY was reported in Honduras in 1996 and in a decade killed almost 95% of the highly susceptible Atlantic tall variety. Mexico and Jamaica have also experienced severe LY epidemics. In Central America the disease is presently in Honduras, Guatemala and Belize and no records exist for Panamá or Costa Rica that also have an Atlantic coast populated by susceptible varieties. This paper reports on the decade long replanting efforts in Honduras with tolerant varieties such as the Maypan hybrids in the late 1990s, Malayan dwarfs and Pacific Mexican tall and more recently, with Brazilian green dwarfs varieties. It also reports on research efforts to develop robust sampling and diagnostic methods for the LY phytoplasma and other palm diseases and to understand the possible breakdown of resistance observed in the early 2000s of the tolerant varieties. Finally, it documents other important pests and diseases such as bud rot caused by <i>Phytophtora palmivora</i> in coconut, African oil palm and other palmacea species in the region. Specifically, it documents a recent outbreak of LY on <i>Thrinax raddiata</i> on the river banks of the Rio Platano Biosphere reserve in Honduras.
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