Alternaria del melo in Trentino: esperienze di contenimento della malattia

The first significant case of Alternaria on apple of cv Golden Delicious was confirmed in 2000 (Gobber et al., 2004) in few orchards located in very humid area of Bleggio (Trento, Valli Giudicarie). The disease increased during the subsequent years in a clearly delimited area characterized by high humidity. In later years, especially 2005 to 2009 the disease was sporadically detect in other Trentino areas, as Valle del Sarca, Val di Non and Valsugana, especially in orchards with high humidity conditions. The presence of the disease has been reported since the 1990 in some areas of South Tyrol and from 2004-2005 in Veneto and Piemonte region. This paper presents the progress of the disease in Trentino and the results of pest management field trials performed during the years 2009-2010. Results showed the effectiveness of iprodione, pyraclostrobin (alone and in mixture with boscalid) and, particularly, of fluazinam. Moreover were confirmed the difficulties of Alternaria management