Journal of Agricultural Science and Technology A 7 (2017) 401-406 doi: 10.17265/2161-6256/2017.06.005 Occurrence of Root Rot Caused by Phytophthora cryptogea on Common Sage (Salvia officinalis) in Turkey Emel Çakir 1 , Reyhan Bahtiyarca Bağdat 2 , Yakup Zekai Katircioğlu 3 and Salih Maden 3 1. Plant Protection Central Research Institute, Ankara 06172, Turkey 2. Central Research Institute for Field Crops, Ankara 06170, Turkey 3. Department of Plant Protection, Faculty of Agriculture, University of Ankara, Ankara 06110, Turkey Abstract: Common sage or Dalmatian sage (Salvia officinalis L.) is a perennial plant (subshrub), native to the Mediterranean region. This research was conducted to identify the fungi species which cause a sudden damping-off disease in some common sage plantation, in the coastal experimental areas of Antalya and Izmir provinces of Turkey. The infected plant materials were collected from Mediterranean and Eagean regions which showed root and crown rots typical of Phytophthora sp. symptoms. Ten plants having those symptoms were used for identification of the causal agent by Phytophthora selective medium. A new Phytophthora species was isolated and identified as P. cryptogea as a result of morphological and molecular characteristics of DNA base sequences of internal transcribed spacer (ITS) regions. Pathogenicity of P. cryptogea was proved on rooted cuttings of common sage. This is the first report of P. cryptogea on common sage in Turkey. Key words: Sage, Salvia, Phytophthora root rot, cutting. 1. Introduction More than 90 sage (Salvia spp.) species are found in Anatolian flora of Turkey. Although Salvia officinalis is not native to Turkey, it has been well adapted to Central Anatolian climatic conditions. It has been used in indigestion, treatment of inflammation of the mouth and throat, and excessive sweating, including that associated with peri-menopause and as a food flavoring. In order to meet increased industrial demands, new common sage lines and cultivars having desease tolerance should be bred to help in provision of high quality raw material for industrial use without depending on natural flora. Extensive collection from natural flora has resulted in the extinction of some Salvia species and has let to use of the undesired materials, like Phlomis species instead of common sage. To Corresponding author: Emel Çakir, Ph.D., research field: plant pathology. protect the natural flora, attempts to cultivate these species have been made since 1980s, starting with the Agricultural Research Institutes. First cultivation effort was started by Menemen Agricultural Research Institute in 1981 and later on some efforts were made at two other places, in Turkey. Severe damping-off was observed at the above mentioned experimental plots and the pathogens causing the disease were determined by Çarkacı and Maden [1], where many fungi were isolated from the root rots and pathogenicity of 191 isolates was performed by inoculating sterile soil by fungal spore suspensions and planting with sage seedlings grown in sterile soil. Some isolates of Fusarium oxysporum, F. solani, F. moniliforme and Rhizoctonia solani produced 90%-100% damping-off. Although the diseases of common sage have not been investigated in natural flora of Turkey, a few reports are available from cultivated areas. Root rot on cultivated common sage was also found common in Poland, and Fusarium D DAVID PUBLISHING