Occurrence of stone fruit viroids in Bosnia and Herzegovina

Tissue-imprint hybridization (TIH) assays were used to determine the occurrence and incidence of Peach latent mosaic viroid (PLMVd) and Hop stunt viroid (HSVd) in stone fruit trees in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Our collections included trees of plum, peach, cherries, apricot, myrobalan and blackthorn from 33 commercial orchards and 2 nurseries, in the areas of Banja Luka, Gradacac, Sarajevo and Mostar. Of the 410 trees assayed, 44 (11%) tested positive by TIH assays. PLMVd was detected in 39 peach trees, including two old (seed grown) vineyard peach trees (Prunus persica subsp. vulgaris). Tests for HSVd were positive in 3 apricot and 2 plum trees. PLMVd was widely distributed throughout the country. In contrast, HSVd was found only in the northern part of the country. Both native and imported cultivars of Prunus were infected. This is the first record of PLMVd and HSVd in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In a separate experiment, peach trees with PLMVd were monitored in the autumn, winter and spring seasons, with tissue imprints of leaf petioles, dormant cuttings and forced sprouts from dormant cuttings. Irrespective of the tissues assayed, nearly all samples tested positive for PLMVd.