First Report of Pink Seed of Common Bean Caused by Erwinia rhapontici

In 2001, a new disease of common bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) caused by Erwinia rhapontici (Millard) Burkh. was detected in seed samples from southern Alberta, Canada. Infected seeds had pink or pinkish-brown lesions on the seed coat. The disease was found in great northern (cv. US1140), pink (cv. Viva), and pinto (cv. Othello) beans at low (<0.1%) frequencies. Isolation from surface-sterilized pink seeds resulted in bacterial cultures, which produced a water-soluble pink pigment on potato dextrose agar (PDA). Seven isolates were tested for physiological characteristics using conventional tests (1) and API 50CHE test strips (bioMerieux Canada, St. Laurent, Quebec), and tested for cellular fatty acids using the MIDI system (Newark, DE). All isolates were gram-negative, motile, facultative anaerobic rods with mucoid colonies and produced a pink pigment on PDA. They were positive for citrate utilization, catalase, methyl red, and Voges-Proskauer, and negative for arginine dihydrolase, lysine and ornithine de...