leaf forms in Wendy's Gold and Virus questions

[Alan_b]

Thank you, Rollo; I find this all very fascinating.  I hope you don't mind my debating with you a little; it's really just a ploy to encourage you into revealing more of your great knowledge in this field.   

[Diane Clement]

Very interesting information. 
The link needs editing, should read
http://www.pocketdiagnostic.com/products/20
not diagnostics

[Maggi Young]

Thank you Diane, I have repaired Rollo's link. That pocketdiagnostic site will be one of interest to many.

[ronm]

  Is it really being said that a number of Galanthus varieties are possibly acting as 'Typhoid Mary' for the CMV? This may have been common knowledge amongst growers for years but it's new ( and bad! ) news for me,

[ChrisD]

Thanks Rollo, very very interesting. I had always assumed that seeds were free of virus infection and therefore any seedlings of the inverse pocs (for instance) would be much less likely to show the same characteristics. However there have been comments elsewhere on the forum suggesting Trym etc are good seeders and produce offspring with similar inverse poc flowers. D you know if the seeds can harbour these viruses?

Thanks
Chris

[Carolyn Walker]

Quote from Rollo: "Galanthus, as a genus, has very strong anti viral properties and extracts have been used against both human and animal viruses."

I can vouch for this because last year a lab in the States bought a large quantity of G. nivalis from me to use in HIV and related research.

Carolyn

[johnw]

Virtually nothing is known or understood about the viruses and symptom expression in Snowdrops. I suppose this is because it is not a commercial crop as Narcissus are.

Rollo  - One would think there would be some research on Stagnospora curtisii as it surely must be a big problem on Narcissus crops.  We are painfully aware that most Hippeastrum are badly infested.  Do you know if any research is being done or if there is any interest in pursuing such?

From a previous post on the Forum:

 "Here is a brief excerpt from the following site:
http://www.cabdirect.org/abstracts/20001007697.html (http://www.cabdirect.org/abstracts/20001007697.html)

"Three isolates antagonistic to Stagonospora curtisii on Narcissus sp. were isolated and selected from fields of Zhangzhou Jiuhu. The morphology, cultivation, physiology, biochemistry and DNA base compositions of these isolates were tested for identification. CS5 was characterized as Bacillus subtilis, CS51 as B. cereus and CS121 as Pseudomonas fluorescens. Their DNA base compositions were 43.7%, 39.1% and 66.8%, respectively."  

Not sure how to interpret this but B. subtilis is available here as an RTU spray for mildew.  Thoughts?

Meanwhile thanks for your very valuable information.   Are these viruses easily transmissble by casual contact?

johnw  

[daveyp1970]

Can i ask are all my drops with green outers virus infected then?

[Martin Baxendale]

Rollo - do you (or anyone else) know if virus can be transmitted through pollen when cross-pollinating. I worry about this when doing crosses and try to avoid using the pollen of anything that I suspect may carry virus in my breeding programme, but of course you can't always be sure. Also, I assume that a snowdrop infected with a fungal disease like stagonospora curtisii might be able to transmit the disease in its pollen if used for crosses? Or is pollen like seed in that it resists virus (and fungal?) transmission.

[Martin Baxendale]

I worry especially about using pollen from older galanthus cultivars to do back-crosses with my best new (presumably virus-free) seedlings in case I infect them.

[annew]

Ditto me, re narcissus. 

[Alan_b]

Rollo - do you (or anyone else) know if virus can be transmitted through pollen when cross-pollinating.

Trym is well known for passing on Trym-like characteristics to its progeny.  I don't know if it needs to be the seed-parent to do this but if not and it can produce Trym-alikes as the pollen parent then the logic of Rollo's belief must be that is has passed on the virus.

[johnw]

Rollo - do you (or anyone else) know if virus can be transmitted through pollen when cross-pollinating.

Trym is well known for passing on Trym-like characteristics to its progeny.  I don't know if it needs to be the seed-parent to do this but if not and it can produce Trym-alikes as the pollen parent then the logic of Rollo's belief must be that is has passed on the virus.

Alan and Rollo - Is there a chance that Trym's characteristics are not virus-related at all despite it being virus-ridden. Or is there a direct correlation between outer green markings and virus that is thoroughly conclusive.   i.e. in layman's terms I think this way - I may have the measles but it has nothing to do with my broken leg.

johnw - +6 and grey

[annew]

If it were simply the virus making the Trym-like colouring, would we not expect it to pass to nearby plants by infection, and not simply by breeding? I hope...

[annew]

Maybe we should put a Trym amongst our yellows