• Weed & Turfgrass Science
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.23-28
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• 2016

Zoysiagrass possessing the leaf yellowing with excessive tillers was first found in a golf course in Gyunggi province at last three to four years ago and since then have rapidly spread many golf courses in Korea. The symptom is very similar to that of yellow tuft or downy mildew, which is caused by Sclerophthora macrospora, on cool-season turfgrasses including Kentucky bluegrass and ryegrass. Microscopic study was firstly carried out to look over the presence of the pathogen in the infected leaf and stem tissues. Oospores and sporangia, reported as typical indicators of downy mildew, were obviously observed from the infected leaves. Using a set of primers based on the 18S ribosomal DNA from S. macrospora, the specific DNA fragment corresponding the gene was amplified. This study reveals that S. macrospora might be involved in spread of leaf yellowing of zoysiagrass with excessive tillers.