Fusarium redolens causes black rot disease in Gastrodia elata grown in China

In recent years, Gastrodia elata black rot disease has occurred in Qiankou town, Dejiang county, Guizhou Province. Symptoms of the disease appeared in the root of G. elata, and led to tuber rot, necrosis, and a pungent odor. In this study, we aimed to identify the pathogenic fungi causing black rot disease of G. elata by morphological and molecular methods. We isolated and cultured the infected plants and obtained a pure culture of the fungus. According to the morphological characteristics and molecular identification, the pathogen isolated from the tubers of infected G. elata was identified as Fusarium redolens.