Our instructor in my Master Gardening class today is a Phd in horticulture/plant pathology. He told us that many fungal diseases including fusarium, a.k.a. stengelbrand can be be carried by seeds. Sorry to open up a new can of worms, but felt everyone who grows these deserves to know as many facts as are available ... Gretchen
A note on Fusarium
Thanks for sharing Gretchen. I think from the studies they did in Germany on stengelbrand they found that it did NOT pass through seeds. But this doesn't mean that other strains of fusarium and other diseases can't be passed through seeds. In fact, there are many diseases that can.
As far as I know... maybe I'm wrong... but I don't think anyone who had plants tested came back with a definte answer that their disease was the same German version of stengelbrand. I'm not saying that stengelbrand is not here... but I am saying that I haven't seen anyone post that their lab test were a definite possitive for the same version, species, or strain ( or whatver) that causes stengelbrand in Germany.
To me a diagnosis of fusarium, phytophthora, or phoma... still doesn't prove that it's the same thing. I hope we will be able to come up with some solid answers this year.
Thanks Sue! Just makes me more aware, and to watch my seedlings in the same way I watch my cuttings...
The scarey part to me is that none of us grow our seedlings in a sterile environment,and can get it just like a full grown plant.
But if a seedling comes down with it the first thing some people will say it was carried by the seed instead of thinking it got it from the environment or unsterile handling or soil...
I agree with Sue as no one in the USA has had theirs identified as the same strain as the European.But ,have the testers in the US used cultures or (what ever they use) to compare it to the SB found in Europe.
I don't think they care that much about the brugs here because they are not a cash crop and are not widely grown,so they won't investigate it that deeply
Just my opinion...and I'm a dang truck driver(and a rocket scientist in my spare time)
so what do I know
David sent his to a lab and it wasn't even fusarium, it was phoma, a fungus that has similiar symptoms to fusarium.
I may add, that the european tests results on SB are unsure due to the lack of interest by the european testers. I am hoping that due to the increase of interest on brugmansias in the US, that there is a chance to find out what is causing SB.
There is only one thing, we can be 100% sure about: SB is carried into a plant collection by other plants, this is a FACT! SB is not transmitted through seeds. This has already been proven.
It would be interesting to find out WHY mostly yellow Multihybrids are threatened by SB. There are still many unanswered questions about SB.
I dont think Gretchen, that you have opened another can of worms. SB is a serious disease on Brugmansia and should not be neglected.