The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station (CAES) recently confirmed that in June, 2012 an established bed of Pachysandra (Pachysandra terminalis) was found to be infected by Boxwood Blight (
Cylindrocladium pseudonaviculatum). The infected Pachysandra leaves exhibited “diffuse yellow haloes” but no stems lesions or dieback was observed. The Pachysandra bed was adjacent to newly planted Boxwood (
Buxus) plants that were found to be infected with the disease and were likely the initial source of the inoculum.
Several months ago, researchers at CAES were able to show, experimentally, that
Pachysandra terminalis was a potential host of Boxwood Blight under the optimal conditions created to perform the study. However, this is the first confirmation of Pachysandra being infected in the landscape under natural conditions. Pachysandra and Boxwood are members of the plant family Buxaceae, as is Sarcococca which has also been shown to be a potential host of the disease under experimental conditions.
For more information and to read the actual report from CAES click
here.
