Pear degeneration in Emilia Romagna Region

The “pear degeneration” is increasingly jeopardizing the pear production in Emilia Romagna. Furthermore, starting from the 1980s, the average temperatures gradually increased, with peaks above 35°C more and more frequent with a clear reduction of rain. The summer evapotranspiration values are increasingly higher. This situation may have induced several farms to carry out irrigation surpluses also in unsuitable soils and agronomic and productive situations, with an increasing mortality of pear trees. In this context, the Apo Conerpo and Phytosanitary Service of Modena carried out a survey showing that the agronomic management of orchards plays a fundamental role in the manifestation of the pear degeneration problem, likely related to a loss of the soil structure and a consequent reduction of root functionality. It is evident that ‘Abbé Fetel’ grafted on dwarf rootstocks requires more attention because of a lack of the growth of the root system. This tends to exacerbate potential disaffinity and disaffinity problems, resistance of plants to stress, since a stunted root system is not able to support a well-structured canopy with high productivity. With regard to the phytosanitary state, the surveys on the aerial part of the plant showed a worrying situation linked to the spread of cancers produced by Valsa ceratosperma, a fungus affecting especially the central structure of the plant. Cancers that extend into the first branches and on the stems proceed by limiting the flow toward the roots, which leads to decay of the tree. A general decay of the root systems, in the absence of a dominant biotic factor, was found with the proliferation of primary or secondary different microorganisms.