Rhizopus Rot of Mulberry-grafted Saplings Caused by Rhizopus oryzae

A new disease on stocks of mulberry-grafted saplings was found in Tsukuba in 1999. A representative isolate of the Rhizopus species that was consistently isolated from rotted tissues was pathogenic to healthy mulberry stocks. The causal fungus was identified morphologically as Rhizopus oryzae Went & Prinsen Geerligs. Rhizopus rot (“Naefuhaibyou” in Japanese) was proposed for the name of the disease. This is the first report on a mulberry disease caused by R. oryzae.