Effect of temperature on the interaction between Phlebiopsis gigantea and the root-rot forest pathogen Heterobasidion spp.

Abstract

The biocontrol agent Phlebiopsis gigantea is widely applied to stump surfaces during commercial thinning operations in Northern Europe to prevent airborne infection of Norway spruce (Picea abies) stumps by the root and butt-rot pathogen Heterobasidion spp. It has been suggested that warmer climatic conditions in the future may affect the interaction between the pathogen and the biocontrol agent, and may enable Heterobasidion annosum sensu stricto, which is currently restricted to southern areas of Sweden, to move further northward. To determine whether warm temperatures do effect the interaction between P. gigantea and Heterobasidion spp., we conducted a series of experiments to investigate the effect of temperature on the growth of P. gigantea and several Heterobasidion spp. and on the ability of P. gigantea to overgrow Heterobasidion spp. in paired interaction experiments in vitro. To validate our in vitro findings, we set up field experiments to examine the interaction between P. gigantea and the Heterobasidion spp. that infect spruce in Sweden, Heterobasidionparviporum and H. annosum s.s., under different temperature regimes. Our study showed that temperature did not diminish the effectiveness of P. gigantea to protect spruce stumps against infection by H. parviporum. The growth rate of P. gigantea in stumps was higher than that of H. parviporum, particularly in sapwood. We found little support for a hypothetical increase in H. annosum s.s. damage under warmer climatic conditions. In vitro studies showed that regardless of the temperature regime, H. annosum s.s. was less resistant to overgrowth by P. gigantea than H. parviporum. Under field conditions, the relatively low infection capacity of H. annosum s.s. to P. abies stumps seems to be the crucial factor determining the outcome of the interaction. The results of paired in vitro experiments between P. gigantea and non-European Heterobasidion species, for example, Heterobasidionaraucariae, Heterobasidionirregulare and others, suggest that P. gigantea may be less effective as a biocontrol agent against species or isolates adapted to high temperatures (20–25°C), particularly those species that are able to grow rapidly at temperatures as high as 25°C.