On agents of sunflower alternaria

The species of Alternaria isolated from the samples of sunflower plants and seeds from the Volgograd, Voronezh and Rostov areas and several districts of the Krasnodar region were identified. In the infected aboveground parts of sunflower plants the specialized species: A. helianthi, A. helianthiinficiens and non-specialized species - A. tenuissima, A. alternate and A. infectoria complex were revealed. The small-spore species prevailed in seeds: A. tenuissima (53.6%), A. infectoria complex (24.5%), and A. alternate (12.9%); A. arborescens, A.protenta, A. helianthi, Stemphylium sp. and Ulocladium sp. were also present. Bipolaris australiensis was found in sunflower seeds in Russia for the first time.