he pear disorder described as fire blight has long been disputed in Egypt due to relatively dry climate unfavorable for the disease epidemic. Efforts were carried out in the present work to clarify the cause of confusion and to elucidate some aspects of such discrepancies. Orchards inspections in El-Behera governorate revealed obvious scorching on foliage of some trees, without noticeable seeping under many circumstances. The syndrome disputed plant pathologists in many institutions, because of the validated absence of such scorching on apple trees raised in the same pear orchard. Samples collected from different pear organs of sporadically affected trees, were subject to isolate the pathogen on either high sucrose or Miller-Schroth (MS), media selective for Erwinia amylovora. Macroscopic, microscopic, biochemical and molecular determinations revealed no obvious variation among isolates recovered from different pear tree organs. The obtained results indicated that, the isolated bacteria belonged to Erwinia amylovora. Isolates from cankerous branches, however, were more pathogenic compared to those recovered from other plant organs. The rootstocks dominating in Egypt are P.communis, P.betulaefolia and P.calleryana. The effect of such rootstocks on" MKM" grafted pear cultivar was compared. The differences in the blooming date and variation in the occurrence and severity of such a disorder was evaluated. The earlier blooming, as shown influenced by the rootstock effect, the lower the disease expression. P.calleryana and P.betulaefolia showed full blooming in the third week of March, and escaped severe infection. The remarkable late onset of flowering of P.communis grafted trees commencing at the end of March, resulted in greater disease complications, due to the possible discharge of bacteria from holdover cankers, coinciding with more favorable temperature and higher insect activity. The influence of different rootstocks on growth habits of pear grafts and their respective influence on the disorders in concern must be fully investigated. The occurrence of associated microscopic mites must be seriously considered, which may be contributing to the reported discrepancy among scientists and the contradictory remarks on fire blight epidemics in Egypt.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
customersupport@researchsolutions.com
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.
Copyright © 2025 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.