An olive grove infested with Xylella fastidiosa in
Apulia, Italy in 2019
Common names
OQDS
Causal agents
Xylella fastidiosa
Hosts
Olive trees
Vectors
Meadow froghopper
Distribution
Southern Italy
Symptoms
Dieback of the leaves, twigs and branches
Disease of olive trees
Olive quick decline syndrome (OQDS) (in Italian: Complesso del Disseccamento Rapido dell'Olivo, CDRO or CoDiRo) is a wasting disease of
olive trees which causes
dieback of the leaves, twigs and branches so that the trees no longer produce crops of
olives. The main cause is a strain of the bacterium, Xylella fastidiosa, which is spread by plant-sucking insects such as the
meadow froghopper. The
bacteria restrict the flow of
sap within the tree and so choke its extremities.[1]
Impact
The disease particularly affects
olive groves in
Southern Italy. It was first detected in Italy in 2013,[2] in the
Salento Peninsula; by late 2013, it was estimated that approximately 8,000 hectares were affected.[3] As of 2020, the disease was threatening olive groves and oil production in Italy, Greece, and Spain, which together account for 95% of European oil production.[4][5] One 2020 model predicts a potential economic impact of the disease for Italy over 50 years between 1.9 billion to 5.6 billion Euros.[4]
In addition to Europe, the disease has also been detected in olive crops in California, Argentina and Brazil.[6]
Symptoms
Symptoms include
leaf scorch and desiccation of twigs and branches, beginning at the upper part of the crown and then moving to the rest of the tree, which acquires a burned look.[7]
^Martelli, G. P.; Boscia, D.; Porcelli, F.; Saponari, M. (1 February 2016). "The olive quick decline syndrome in south-east Italy: a threatening phytosanitary emergency". European Journal of Plant Pathology. 144 (2): 235–243.
doi:
10.1007/s10658-015-0784-7.
ISSN1573-8469.
S2CID16126474.