1Advanced Centre for Plant Virology, Division of Plant Pathology, ICAR-Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi-110 012
Department of Plant Pathology, Punjab Agricultural University, Ludhiana-141 004 (Punjab)
Online published on 7 April, 2020.
Huanglongbing (HLB)/citrus greening is destroying millions of citrus trees globally including India. HLB is caused by phloem limited, non-culturable alpha-proteobacteria, under genus Candidatus Liberibacter (Ca. L) which predominantly vectored by psyllid (Diaphorina citri). The PCR-based technique was used for detection of Ca. L asiaticus (Ca. Las) associated with HLB targeting partial 16S rRNA. No recent report on incidence and distribution of HLB in Kinnow mandarin (Citrus reticulata cv. Kinnow) orchards of Punjab of India is available. Based on extensive survey and PCR, incidence and distribution of HLB in Punjab was determined. High HLB incidence of 17.5–39.1% in Punjab was observed. Occurrence of psyllids in mandarin orchards of Ludhiana in Punjab was observed. The PCR based diagnostic method used in this study is suitable for a rapid detection of Ca. Las in infected mandarin trees in India.
Citrus reticulata, Disease incidence, Disease distribution, Huanglongbing
