Pests > Pests Entities > Viruses & Phytoplasmas > Risks, importations of orchids and anthuriums, FSM

Risks, importations of orchids & anthuriums, FSM

January 2015. An email from the Federated States of Micronesia to Palau was sent to PestNet. In it FSM asked what risks exist for the importation of orchids and anthurium from Hawaii. If there are specific diseases that are of concern, what conditions should be imposed on the importations.

There are a few viruses infecting orchids, for instance:

• Odontoglossum ringspot virus (ORSV) – already in Tonga
• Cymbidium mosaic virus (CymMV) – already in Tonga
• Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) – already in Tonga
• Capsicum chlorosis virus-phalaenopsis isolate (CaCV)
• Phalaenopsis chlorotic spot virus (PhCSV)
• Bean yellow mosaic virus (BYMV)
• Turnip mosaic virus (TuMV)
• Carnation mottle virus (CarMV)
• Orchid fleck virus (OFV)

For Anthurium, the viruses are:

• Dasheen mosaic virus (DsMV)
• Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV)
• Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV)

Tissue culture pretty much excludes most organisms of concern, but viruses remain an issue. One suggestion would be to ask whether the source can be certified as virus tested, and for what viruses.

It was not clear if there is any more information since data was collated in 2010. Back then, of the viruses listed above, only Cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) and Dasheen mosaic virus (DsMV) were known to be present in FSM.

Important Biosecurity issues

It has been a while since I have been involved in things like this so I hope I am not too out of date. The assumption has been that ornamental orchids would be likely hosts of important serious viral pathogens of vanilla. I wonder if there is more information now on this?

If so, the most important of these would be potyviruses, which are very serious pathogens, causing diseases of vanilla in several Pacific Islands. The major ones being Vanilla mosaic virus (VanMV) and the Vanilla necrosis strain of Watermelon mosaic virus (WMV). There are also, no doubt others that cause similar symptoms, like the Wisteria vein mosaic virus that turned up in Samoa a few years ago.

Perhaps the biggest worry from anthurium imports from Hawai’i might be bacterial blight, cause by Xanthomonas aoxonopodis pv. dieffenbachiae. Do you already have this one in Palau? I expect careful tissue culturing would take care of it, though infection is systemic.