Isolation and molecular identification of a new Sordaria fimicola and Nigrospora sphaerica from stem of Prunus armeniaca. L. tree

The sooty canker disease was studied in some orchards of the Karbala and Babylon provinces to understand the reasons for the decline of apricot trees (Prunus armeniaca L.) in some areas of Karbala Governorate, specifically Al-Husayniyah District (Al-Qantara Al-Bayda area and Bani Hassan stream) and Awn In the province of Babylon (the first and second ponds, the Umm al-Hamam area, Bustan and Hor Hussein). The isolation results showed the presence of Sordaria fimicola with the highest frequency of 37 % followed by Nigrospora sphaerica with frequencyrates of 23 %, sequencing new S. fimicola and N. sphaerica isolates that have been registered at the Gene Bank. Pathogenicity test results showed canker on the seedlings one months after the inoculation process the length of the canker was 1.25 and 0.9 cm for both fungi sequentially and significantly different from comparison treatment. The pathogen was isolated and greenhouse inoculation and diagnosed based on their morphological, molecular and pathogenicity.