LATENT INFECTIONS OF MONILINIA IN PEACH ORCHARDS OF

Brown rot, caused by the fungi of genus Monilinia, is one of the major diseases of the peaches worldwide, especially in humid areas. The purpose of this work was to investigate the existence of the latent infections in three nectarine cultivars (Venus, Fantasia, Tasty Free). In addition, the effect of spray applications in reducing the percentage of latent infections of nectarines was examined. It was found that latent infections were detected in fruits collected on 23 May (Venus 3.6%, Tasty Free 13.4%, Fantasia 20.8%) and 23 June. (Venus 10.2%%, Tasty Free 14.7%, Fantasia 25.6%). In contrast, no latent infection was found in fruits collected on 8 June. The results also showed that trees sprayed on 2 June showed significant lower percentage of latent infections than those sprayed on 15 May. Similarly, the sprayed trees showed significant lower percentage of fruit rots in comparison to untreated control with those sprayed on 2 June had the lowest. This study confirm the existence of latent infections in nectarine cultivars. In addition, the results of this work showed that a spray of nectarines in early June can significantly reduce the percentage of fruit rots peaches caused by the fungi of the genus Monilinia. Key words: Monilinia, disease, peach