The success of Wrocław phytopathologists

The first observations were carried out in 1998 and every following year resulted in new ones. – I dealt with this issue when I was a student in our scientific circle. Then during my doctoral studies I had a short break but when I became a doctor and obtained funds from the ministry I went back to studying the dwarf mountain pine – says Doctor Wojciech Pusz, a leader of the research team that includes Doctor Włodzimierz Kita and Agata Kaczmarek, MSc from the Department of Plant Protection and Doctor Kamila Nowosad from the Department of Genetics, Plant Breeding and Seed Production. Doctor Ondrej Koukol from the Charles University in Prague and Doctor David Minter from Great Britain also took part in the study.

The research accomplished a discovery and description of a new species of fungi which is responsible for triggering yellow stains on the needles of the dwarf mountain pine. The needles fell in July and the sprouts have been healthy. This year’s needles have the characteristic “brush” look. Doctor Pusz claims: - We are proud that we have succeeded. A discovery of something new is not so common in science. I would like to thank the whole team because it was a joint effort.

The new species was called Lophodermium corconticum, in honour of the Karkonosze. – It is very likely that the new species is endemic, i.e. it can be found only in this particular region. That is why we are also carrying out the research in other mountain ranges. We already know that it cannot be found in the Tatras. We would also like to study the dwarf mountain pine in the Czech Republic. If our hypothesis is confirmed, we will also focus on the issue of protecting this species – These are the further research plans presented by the team leader.

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