Effects of temperature on the incubation and latent periods of hawthorn powdery mildew (Podosphaera clandestina)

The effects of temperature on the length of the incubation and latent periods of hawthorn powdery mildew, caused by Podosphaera clandestina , were studied. At constant temperatures over the range 10–28°C, the incubation period ranged from 5 to 14 days and the latent period from 5 to 16 days; no visible colonies had developed at 30°C after 15 days. The relationships between temperature and the rates of fungus development within the incubation and latent periods were well described by a nonlinear model. The resulting curves were asymmetrically bell-shaped with an optimum temperature of approximately 23°C. The lengths of the incubation and latent periods under fluctuating temperatures were also determined, and were used to evaluate the models developed from constant temperature experiments for their accuracy of prediction. The incubation and latent periods under fluctuating temperature regimes were predicted using a rate-summation scheme with a time step of 24 min, by integrating the respective incubation and latent rate functions obtained under constant temperatures. The predicted incubation or latent periods agreed well with the observed values. Under constant temperature the interval between the times when symptoms and sporulation on the same leaflet were first observed was very short, on average <1 day, and was not significantly correlated with temperature. However, this interval was negatively correlated with mean temperature under fluctuating regimes.