A report on occurrence of Neofusicoccum sp. in Carallia brachiata (Lour.) Merr. trees from Karnataka, India

Carallia brachiata (Lour.) Merr. is one of the soft woody species occurring all along the Western Ghats region of Kundapura, Karnataka, India. The species is considered to be a potent medicinal plant exclusively used against itch and septic poisoning. A study was under gone based on the report of forest department (Karnataka) on mortality of Carallia brachiata. Observation of symptoms on the infected trees and experimental analysis of the samples under laboratory conditions revealed the incidence of Neofusicoccum sp., a first report on Carallia brachiata. This particular Neofusicoccum sp. belongs to Botryospaeriaceae family, and is considered to be an important fungal pathogen associated with tree decline in forest and plantation worldwide.