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For the past 3 years, fields of statice ( Limonium sinuatum ) near Pompei, southern Italy have been affected by a previously unrecorded leaf spot disease, which was also found in 2002 near Pescia in central Italy. Infections first occurred in June and spread during the summer. Leaf spots were circular, brown with a darker edge, 3-6 mm in diameter, and surrounded by an orange or reddish halo. Lesions were also observed on the wings of the flower scapes, while scapes proper were not involved. Old lesions enlarged and merged, causing early yellowing and senescence of leaves; heavy infections resulted in severe defoliation and retarded growth or death of panicles.Microscopic inspection of lesions revealed the presence of dark brown stromata with pale brown conidiophores. Conidiophores were septate, unbranched, sinuous, bent at spore scars, averaging 59 µ m long × 4·8 µ m wide. They bore multiseptate hyaline conidia (95 µ m long × 3·3 µ m wide on average) which were slightly curved, with truncate bases and subacute tips.

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