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POSTERS: Late Breaking I

P-665 - Preventive pruning wound protection reduces wood canker lesions in sweet cherry caused by Cytospora and Eutypa under Chilean field conditions

Monday, August 4, 2025
4:30 PM - 5:15 PM HST
Location: Exhibit Hall 3
Abstract Text:

Wood canker pathogens like Cytospora leucostoma and Eutypa lata produce serious damage in sweet cherry orchards in Chile. Preventive protection is very important because pruning wounds are the main infection entrance. In this research, nine treatments based on active ingredients, including tebuconazole + kresoxim-methyl, tebuconazole + piraclostrobin, difenoconazole + azoxystrobin, chitosan + lecithin, and biocontrol agents were tested under field conditions in cherry trees cv. Skeena. The products, including fungicides, biological and natural compounds, were sprayed on the tree 30 minutes after pruning, and inoculation with the fungi was done 24 hours later. Lesion progress was measured 120 days after inoculation. A completely randomized design with four replicates per treatment was used, and results were analyzed by ANOVA and HSD test (p < 0.05). The untreated control presented the largest lesion development (C. leucostoma: 12.7 cm; E. lata: 12.2 cm). The best result was obtained with tebuconazole + kresoxim-methyl, reducing lesion size to 3.1 cm and 2.6 cm, respectively. Other treatments like tebuconazole + piraclostrobin, chitosan + lecithin, and the biocontrol based on Bionectria, Trichoderma, and Hypocrea also had good effectiveness. There were no phytotoxic symptoms. These results show the importance of applying preventive treatments after pruning to reduce infection risk. Fungicides and biological products could be considered important tools for the integrated management of wood cankers in sweet cherry trees in the central-south zone of Chile.