Effect of mobile fungicides on fungal pre-infection in radiata pine billets.

IRG/WP 99-30191

D R Eden, T Singh, B Kreber

In New Zealand, fungal infection of logs begins directly after felling and whilst severe degrade can be prevented if antisapstain-treated within 24 hours, such short turn-around times of logs are not always practicable. However, conventional antisapstain formulations in use only provide an envelope of protection on the log surface but are unable to control pre-infections below the surface. The objective of this study was to determine the potential of mobile fungicides to arrest pre-infections by sapstain fungi. Radiata pine billets (~ 200x50 mm) were inoculated with isolates of Ophiostoma piliferum and Sphaeropsis sapinea and incubated for 0, 3, 7, and 10 days respectively before antisapstain treatment with mobile fungicides. Two trials were under taken: the first testing three experimental formulations with i) methylene bis thiocyanate (MBT) ii) alkanolamine borate and iii) sodium fluoride and for the second trial, a commercial product, called Sentry™ . At each treatment time, depth of pre-infection was assessed by plating out 5 mm increment cores removed from billets. After 40 days incubation, increment cores were again taken from billets to determine whether the fungicides tested had arrested sapstain pre-infection. The first trial showed the MBT formulation to have superior potential in arresting growth of O. piliferum and S. sapinea with very little growth even after 10 days pre-infection. In the second trial, Sentry™ controlled pre-infections of both sapstain fungi up to 25mm depth.


Keywords: PINUS RADIATA; SAPSTAIN; PRE-INFECTION; MOBILE FUNGICIDES; MBT

Conference: 99-06-06/11 Rosenheim, Germany


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