Abstract
Strawberry necrotic shock virus (SNSV), formerly considered as a strain of Tobacco streak virus (TSV), is one of the many viruses reported in strawberries. Viral diseases have not been an issue thus far for strawberries grown in Florida, probably because most viruses are symptomless on commercial cultivars. However, at the end of the 2008–09 strawberry season, serological tests confirmed the presence of SNSV in research fields at the University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (UF-GCREC) and in some commercial strawberry farms. The presence of SNSV was investigated during the 2009–10 strawberry season. Seven cultivars from 11 nursery sources were tested for SNSV by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Leaf samples were collected three times during the season from research plots at the UF-GCREC and from a grower’s field in the Plant City area. The first sample was taken at the beginning of the season to determine if plants came infected from the nursery. In both fields, SNSV was identified on ‘Florida Radiance’ originating from nine nurseries. ‘Florida Elyana’ was also virus-positive in the UF-GCREC research plots. To determine if the virus was spreading throughout the fields, second and third samples were collected at the middle and end of the season. SNSV was detected on ‘Strawberry Festival’ at the end of the season and additional plants of ‘Florida Radiance’ were also virus-positive, suggesting that the virus had spread somewhat within the fields. During the 2009–10 season, temperatures were unusually low, which may have prevented a more rapid and extensive spread of SNSV.
