FUNGAL COMMUNITIES ISOLATED FROM DEAD APPLE LEAVES FROM ORCHARDS IN QUEBEC

Venturia inaequalis, the causal agent of apple scab, overwinters in ap ple (Malus pumila) leaves on the orchard floor by producing pseudothec ia. The objectives of th is survey were to make a collection of fungi to be subsequently tested for their potential as psychrophile biocontr ol agents against V. inaequalis and to acquire knowledge on the divers ity of the microflora of dead apple leaves. Fungi were recovered from dead apple leaves collected in the spring and fall of 1993. A total of 345 isolates from 49 genera were identified. Fifteen genera were not previously recorded as colonizers of apple leaves in North America.