Isolation and Morphological Identification of Apple Anthracnose Fungus of Colletotrichum sp. KV-21

Abstract

This study was undertaken to isolate and to identify a fungal pathogen Colletotrichum sp. KV-21 associated with apple anthracnose. Rotted Gala apples were used for the isolation of the fungus. The infected tissues were sterilized with 70% ethanol, washed with sterilized distilled water and were transferred to 50 ml containing potato broth (PDB) flasks. The peripheral hyphae of the fungal colony which developed from the infected tissues were isolated on to potato dextrose agar (PDA). On PDA plates the fungus grew well at <TEX>$25^{\circ}C$</TEX> and occupied more than half of a 9 cm petri dish within 5 days. The fungal cultures on PDA were used for morphological observation and identification of the fungus. Conidiophores were produced on the gray to whitish sporodochial structures scattered on PDA plates which gave rise to conidiogenous cells. The structures of the conidia produced on PDA plates were subcylindrical to obovoid, fusoid, tapered and 4 to <TEX>$6\;{\mu}m$</TEX> in size.