Citrus tristeza closterovirus in Georgia
Citrus tristeza closterovirus was considered absent from all Republics of the USSR. Although the Soviet regulations identified CTV as a pest 'potentially dangerous for the USSR', they did not make any specific provisions concerning it. While plants of citrus were prohibited from countries where Xanthomonas campestris pv. citri occurred, this was not the case for CTV. Therefore planting material of citrus could enter under license, and did so, including from countries where the disease occurs. In 1988/1989 a few trees of satsuma (C. unshiu) and orange (C. sinensis cv. Washington Navel) were found to show suspect symptoms in the Black Sea coastal region of what was then the Georgian SSR, and the presence of the disease was confirmed by testing on Mexican lime, and by electron microscopy. So, CTV is now present in Georgia. Possible vectors in Georgia are Toxoptera aurantii and Aphis spiraecola. Measures are being taken to prevent further spread and to ensure that planting material is produced free from this virus.
Sources
Kapanadze, D.E. (1994) [Citrus tristeza in Georgia].
Zashchita Rastenii, no. 6, 33.