Effects of temperature on Phytophthora porri in vitro and in planta

Cardinal temperatures for mycelial growth ofPhytophthora porri on corn-meal agar were <5 (minimum), 15–20 (optimum) and just above 25 °C (maximum). The number of infections after zoospore inoculation of young leaf plants was relatively low at supra-optimal temperatures, but was not affected by sub-optimal temperatures. Even at 0 °C plants were infected. The incubation periods needed for symptom formation were 36–57 d at 0 °C, 13–18 d at 5 °C, and 4–11 d at > 11 °C, and were fitted to temperature between 0 and 24 °C with a hyperbolical model (1/p=0.00812*T+0.0243). Oospore germination, reported for the first time forP. porri, was strongly reduced after 5 h at 45 °C, and totally absent after 5 h at 55 °C. Soil solarization for six weeks during an exceptionally warm period in May–June 1992 in The Netherlands raised the soil temperature at 5 cm depth for 17 h above 45 °C, but did not reduce the initial level of disease in August significantly.