Abstract

A severe shoot die-back disease of cashew is reported from eight year old cashew plantations from Chalakudy, Kerala. The disease which manifests initially as shoot and inflorescence blight, spreads gradually to woody branches resulting in die-back. Botryodiplodia theobromae was found to be the causal organism of the die-back disease. Involvement of fungi in initiating the shoot and inflorescence blight appeared doubtful as no fungal pathogen could be isolated from freshly affected twigs. Though association of C. gloeosporioides and Pestalotiopsis sp., was observed at the advanced stage of blight disease, Botryodiplodia theobromae was the only pathogen which caused die-back disease