First Report of Leaf Spot and Blight Caused by Ralstonia pickettii on Bird of Paradise Tree in Italy

Bird of Paradise tree (Strelitzia alba (L. f.) Skeels) is an ornamental perennial tropical plant grown in southern Italy. In the summer of 2006 and 2007, a widespread, severe leaf disease was observed on seedlings and 1- to 2-year-old plants in two glasshouses located in eastern Sicily. Disease incidence ranged from 10 to 25%. Symptoms on the leaves consisted of dark brown-to-black stripes of varying length and found between the lateral veins. Lesions sometimes coalesced into a large area of necrotic tissue. Symptomatic tissues were ground in a drop of sterile distilled water (SDW) with a scalpel. Suspensions were streaked on King's medium B (KB), nutrient agar, and yeast extract nutrient …