Abstract: | Thirty isolates of Armillaria heimii from western, eastern and southern Africa were cultured for fruit body production in the laboratory. Most isolates fruited easily. Investigation of single-spore progenies revealed that all the isolates do not have the same sexual behaviour: some are heterothallic and unifactorial while others are homothallic. Two African isolates belonging to the species Armillaria mellea also appeared homothallic. Unifactorial heterothallism has not previously been described in Armillaria, species. Homothallic behaviour has been reported only in a rare European species Armillaria ectypa and in the Japanese subspecies Armillaria mellea ssp. nipponica. |