Summary A large database of invasive forest pathogens (IFPs) was developed to investigate the patterns and determinants of invasion in Europe. Detailed taxonomic and biological information on the invasive species was combined with country‐specific data on land use, climate, and the time since invasion to identify the determinants of invasiveness, and to differentiate the class of environments which share territorial and climate features associated with a susceptibility to invasion. IFPs increased exponentially in the last four decades. Until 1919, IFPs already present moved across Europe. Then, new IFPs were introduced mainly from North America, and recently from Asia. Hybrid pathogens also appeared. Countries with a wider range of environments, higher human impact or international trade hosted more IFPs. Rainfall influenced the diffusion rates. Environmental conditions of the new and original ranges and systematic and ecological attributes affected invasiveness. Further spread of established IFPs is expected in countries that have experienced commercial isolation in the recent past. Densely populated countries with high environmental diversity may be the weakest links in attempts to prevent new arrivals. Tight coordination of actions against new arrivals is needed. Eradication seems impossible, and prevention seems the only reliable measure, although this will be difficult in the face of global mobility.

The combination of soil infestation with Phytophthora cinnamomi and repetitive flooding was studied on 1-year-old plants of Quercus ilex (holm oak) and Q. suber (cork oak). In a second experiment, using 2-year-old plants of the same species and of red oak (Q. rubra), the soil infestation was followed by two drought-rewatering cycles. Oak predawn leaf water potential (PLWP) and stomatal conductance (gs) were monitored during both experiments. Root infection, root loss, wilting and mortality were assessed at the end of the experiments. Q. ilex exhibited the highest susceptibility to P. cinnamomi, and Q. rubra the lowest. Root infections caused by P. cinnamomi were more severe in the flooding than in the drought experiment. The most noticeable effect of the infection on plant water relations was a decrease in stomatal conductance. This occurred at different times after inoculation, varying with species susceptibility and experiment. Inoculation with P. cinnamomi induced a decrease of PLWP in Q. ilex plants, and in some Q. suber plants exhibiting a severe root loss. The results further showed that the relationship between PLWP and gs was modified by infection with P. cinnamomi. The combination of flooding and infection with P. cinnamomi acted synergistically on the water relations of Q. ilex. By contrast, there was no significant increase in disease severity due to the postinoculation water stress imposed on the oaks.

Abstract& Key message Increasing human impacts on forests, including unintentional movement of pathogens, climate change, and large-scale intensive plantations, are associated with an unprecedented rate of new diseases. An evolutionary ecology perspective can help address these challenges and provide direction for sustainable forest management.& Context Forest pathology has historically relied on an ecological approach to understand and address the practical management of forest diseases. A widening of this perspective to include evolutionary considerations has been increasingly developed in response to the rising rates of genetic change in both pathogen populations and tree populations due to human activities. & Aims Here, five topics for which the evolutionary perspective is especially relevant are highlighted. & Results The first relates to the evolutionary diversity of fungi and fungal-like organisms, with issues linked to the identification of species and their ecological niches. The second theme deals with the evolutionary processes that allow forest pathogens to adapt to new hosts after introductions or to become more virulent in homogeneous plantations. The third theme presents issues linked to disease resistance in tree breeding programs (e.g., growth-defense trade-offs) and proposes new criteria and methods for more durable resistance. The last two themes are dedicated to the biotic environment of the tree-pathogen system, namely, hyperparasites and tree microbiota, as possible solutions for health management. & Conclusion We conclude by highlighting three major conceptual advances brought by evolutionary biology, i.e., that (i) "not everything is everywhere", (ii) evolution of pathogen populations can occur on short time scales, and (iii) the tree is a multitrophic community. We further translate these into a framework for immediate policy recommendations and future directions for research.