Black dot (Colletotrichum coccodes): An increasingly important disease of potato

In recent years black dot (Colletotrichum coccodes) has become an economically important disease problem in potato (Solanum tuberosum). It is characterized by silvery lesions on the tuber surface which result in a deterioration in skin quality. In addition to causing tuber blemish symptoms, C. coccodes also causes symptoms on stems and foliage, resulting in crop losses in some countries, and is implicated as a factor in the potato early dying disease complex. In the past, the incidence and severity of black dot might have been underestimated, as tuber symptoms were often mistaken for silver scurf (Helminthosporium solani). Inoculum of C. coccodes can be both seed tuber- and soilborne, and disease control is difficult as there are few chemical control methods and little resistance in commercial cultivars. Cultural control options offer the only potential means to control this disease at present. Current developments in rapid and specific PCR-based detection methods are being used to address epidemiological questions.