Multigene Phylogenetics and Morphology Reveal Five Novel Lasiodiplodia Species Associated with Blueberries.

Botryosphaeriaceous fungi cause stem blight, canker and dieback in woody plants. During a survey on the fungal pathogens associated with blueberries in China, 135 blighted, cankered or dead blueberry branches were collected from Fujian and Shandong Provinces. Based on the morphological characterization and phylogenetic analyses of a concatenated ITS rDNA, tef1-α, TUB, and RPB2 loci, five new species of Lasiodiplodia, viz., L. clavispora, L. fujianensis, L. henanica, L. nanpingensis and L. paraphysoides were recognized. Detailed descriptions and illustrations, as well as multigene phylogenies, are provided in this paper. The diversity of plant pathogens on agriculturally and economically important plants is higher than anticipated.