SURVIVAL AND GROWTH IN CULTURE OF 4 FUSARIUM SPECIES IN RELATION TO OCCURRENCE IN SOILS FROM HOT CLIMATIC REGIONS

Comparison of survival and growth in culture of Fusarium aruminatum, F . compactum, F. equiseti and F. sambucinum at constant and fluctuating temperatures showed that F. compactum, abundant in hot arid regions, grew better and had higher survival rates at high temperatures than th e other species. Fusarium acuminatum and F. sambucinum, which originat ed from temperate areas, had survival rates lower than the other two s pecies when grown at elevated temperatures. Fusarium equiseti, a cosmo politan species, was affected less by elevated temperature than were F . acuminatum and F, sambucinum, but was not as well adapted to hot ari d regions as F. compactum.