The invasive tree-of-heaven, Ailanthus altissima (Miller) Swingle, is widespread and damaging throughout North America. Verticillium wilt disease is emerging as a potentially exciting biological control option for this difficult to control tree. In Virginia, Verticillium nonalfalfae has been confirmed causing significant mortality to A. altissima, while V. dahliae is suspected to be present and causing lower levels of disease. Little else is known regarding these two fungal species in this state. The purpose of this research was to gain a better understanding of how Verticillium wilt impacts A. altissima and its potential as a biological control agent. We first confirmed V. dahliae's presence in Virginia and its pathogenicity to A. altissima using Koch's postulates. We then completed a regional field-inoculation experiment to show that V. nonalfalfae effectively kills and spreads to adjacent A. altissima, regardless of V. dahliae presence or other climate and stand variables. Additionally, we showed that V. dahliae causes lower levels of disease than V. nonalfalfae, and does not spread rapidly. Next, we surveyed all Virginia A. altissima stands known to be naturally infected with V. nonalfalfae to determine whether V. nonalfalfae persists long-term, that it considerably reduces A. altissima numbers, and that its local prevalence may be higher than initially suspected. However, we were unable to infect A. altissima seedlings using soil collected at these infested sites, suggesting that V. nonalfalfae's survival within field soil may be limited. Lastly, using paired A. altissima invaded-uninvaded sites, we found that A. altissima presence is associated with a decreased proportion of native plants and species in the woody and herbaceous understory, but not the germinable seedbank. Furthermore, we found that this impact on the woody understory appears to increase over time, supporting early management actions and helping us predict post-management restoration needs. We conclude that V. nonalfalfae has a high potential of successfully limiting A. altissima throughout Virginia, supporting its registration as a biopesticide. / Doctor of Philosophy / Commonly called the tree-of-heaven, the nonnative invasive forest-tree Ailanthus altissima, is extensive, damaging, and spreading throughout North America. After finding large areas of declining tree-of-heaven being killed by two different fungal species (Verticillium nonalfalfae and V. dahliae), research has been focused on how to use these fungi to help us manage the tree-of-heaven. In Virginia, V. nonalfalfae has been confirmed killing large numbers of tree-of-heaven, while V. dahliae is suspected to be present in areas with lower levels of decline. The purpose of our research was to gain a better understanding of how these pathogens impact tree-of-heaven and their potential as biological control agents in Virginia. We first confirmed that V. dahliae is present in Virginia and can cause disease on tree-of-heaven. We then inoculated tree-of-heaven stands throughout the state to confirm that V. nonalfalfae effectively kills and spreads to adjacent tree-of-heaven regardless of V. dahliae presence or other climate or site variables. In contrast, we found that V. dahliae only causes low levels of disease and does not spread effectively. Next, we surveyed all known naturally infected V. nonalfalfae sites in Virginia and demonstrated that V. nonalfalfae persists long term within these stands, considerably reducing but not eradicating the tree-of-heaven, and that V. nonalfalfae's local prevalence may be higher than initially suspected. However, when tree-of-heaven seedlings were planted into soil collected from these infested sites, no disease developed, suggesting that V. nonalfalfae's survival within the soil may be limited. Lastly, by looking at tree-of-heaven stands, we found that the tree-of-heaven's presence is associated with a lower percentage of native plants and species in the understory, but not in the seeds present in the soil. In addition, we found that this impact on the woody plants in the understory appears to become more severe over time, supporting managing the tree-of-heaven as soon as possible. We conclude that V. nonalfalfae used as a biological control has a good potential of successfully limiting the tree-of-heaven in Virginia and support its registration as a biopesticide.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:VTETD/oai:vtechworks.lib.vt.edu:10919/106783 |
| Date | 08 June 2020 |
| Creators | Brooks, Rachel Keys |
| Contributors | Plant Pathology, Physiology and Weed Science, Baudoin, Antonius B., Salom, Scott M., Barney, Jacob, Kasson, Matthew Thomas |
| Publisher | Virginia Tech |
| Source Sets | Virginia Tech Theses and Dissertation |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Dissertation |
| Format | ETD, application/pdf, application/pdf |
| Coverage | Virginia, United States |
| Rights | In Copyright, http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ |
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