Eradication of ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma ulmi’ from the United Kingdom
In the United Kingdom, ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma ulmi’ (EPPO A1 List*) was first found in January 2014 in Ulmus plants deriving from 10 mother plants which had been imported from Italy in 2010/2011 (EPPO RS 2014/089). Eradication measures were taken, and all infected trees and their progeny were destroyed. Annual surveys have been carried out since 2014 and as no further outbreaks have been detected, the NPPO of the United Kingdom now considers that ‘Ca. P. ulmi’ has been successfully eradicated.
The situation of ‘Candidatus Phytoplasma ulmi’ in the United Kingdom can be described as follows: Absent, pest eradicated.
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* Note: Although phytoplasma diseases observed in elms in North America (elm phloem necrosis) and in several European countries (elm yellows) have different symptomatologies, the phytoplasmas associated with them are very closely related if not belonging to the same species ‘Ca. Phytoplasma ulmi’. Therefore, the inclusion of this pathogen on the A1 List (absent from the EPPO region) might need to be reconsidered
Sources
NPPO of the United Kingdom (2017-10).