DISCOVERY OF THE TELEOMORPH OF PHOMA-MEDICAGINIS VAR PINODELLA IN CULTURE

The teleomorph of Phoma medicaginis var. pinodella is reported for the first time. A single isolate, collected from infected plant material in Australia, produced asci and ascospores in culture. The anamorph wa s identified as Phoma medicaginis var. pinodella on the basis of axeni c colony morphology, symptoms on the foliage of a susceptible pea line and characteristic hybridization banding patterns observed during RFL P analysis. The ascospores and asci, although similar in morphology to those produced by Mycosphaerella pinodes, were considerably larger. T herefore, the binomial assignment of the teleomorph remains open to sp eculation. The potential impact on disease dissemination and effective ness of control measures against P. medicaginis var. pinodella are dis cussed.