Grapevine trunk diseases associated with fungi from the Diaporthaceae family in Croatian vineyards.

Grapevine trunk diseases (GTD) have a variety of symptoms and causes. The latter include fungal species from the family Diaporthaceae. The aim of our study was to determine Diaporthaceae species present in the woody parts of grapevines sampled from 12 vine-growing coastal and continental areas of Croatia. The fungi were isolated from diseased wood, and cultures analysed for phenotype (morphology and pathogenicity) and DNA sequence (ITS1, 5.8S, ITS2). Most isolates were identified as Phomopsis viticola, followed by Diaporthe neotheicola and Diaporthe eres. This is the first report of Diaporthe eres as a pathogen on grapevine in the world, while for Diaporthe neotheicola this is the first report in Croatia. Pathogenicity trials confirmed Phomopsis viticola as a strong and Diaporthe neotheicola as a weak pathogen. Diaporthe eres turned out to be a moderate pathogen, which implies that the species could have a more important role in the aetiology of GTD.