First report of Puccinia horiana in India
In 2013, a survey on fungal diseases of chrysanthemum was conducted in Kothagiri Hills (Nilgiris district) and Yercaud Hills (Salem district) in Tamil Nadu, India. During this survey, rust symptoms resembling those of Puccinia horiana (EPPO A2 List) were observed on one chrysanthemum cultivar (Dendranthema grandiflora cv. ‘Saffin Pink’). The disease mainly affected leaves, but in some cases, it spread to stems, bracts, and even flowers. In severe cases, pustules coalesced leading to complete drying and death of the plant. The disease incidence ranged from 70 to 80% across all the areas surveyed and was observed in three crops cultivated throughout the year. Laboratory tests (morphological, molecular, pathogenicity) confirmed the identity of the fungus. This is the first time that P. horiana is reported in India.
The situation of Puccinia horiana in India can be described as follows: Present, first found in 2013 in 3 crops of the same cultivar in Tamil Nadu.
Sources
Dheepa R, Renukadevi P, Vinod Kumar S, Nakkeeran S (2015) First report of chrysanthemum white rust (Puccinia horiana) in India. Plant Disease 99(9), p 1279.