FRAGARIA MULTICIPITA, REDUCED TO THE RANK OF FORMA

The distinctive features of Fragaria multicipita Fernald, including sm all size, multicipital habit, floral aberrations and absence of runner s to a greater or lesser degree, are symptoms of strawberry multiplier disease resulting from mycoplasma infection. Direct evidence of the d isease in F. multicipita plants was obtained through graft inoculation using normal F. chiloensis which developed increasingly pronounced mu ltiplier disease-like symptoms after three months. Plants referable to F. multicipita were not confined to specialized habitats. The chromos ome number of 2n = 56 obtained from five small multicipital plants rep resenting four locations was the same as that widely reported for the F. virginiana complex in North America. These observations suggest tha t F. multicipita is only a diseased form of F. virginiana, despite the stability of its distinctive traits in cultivation and the potential adaptive nature of these traits on cool disturbed rivershores. Accordi ngly, the new combination, Fragaria virginiana Duch. ssp. glauca (S. W ats.) Staudt f. multicipita (Fern.) Catling & J. Cayouette, is propose d.