The Epidemiology of Sudden Oak Death Disease Caused by in a Mixed Bay Laurel-Oak Woodland Provides Important Clues for Disease Management.

Epidemiological models are important for the understanding of disease progression in plants and for the design of control strategies. , the pathogen responsible for the disease known as Sudden Oak Death, causes lethal infection on several oaks but relies on California bay laurels for transmission. Here, repeated surveys of bay laurels and oaks indicated that bay laurel disease incidence was positively correlated with rainfall, bay laurel density, and an eastern aspect, and negatively correlated with bay laurel basal area.

Phenotypic diversification is associated with host-induced transposon derepression in the sudden oak death pathogen Phytophthora ramorum.

The oomycete pathogen Phytophthora ramorum is responsible for sudden oak death (SOD) in California coastal forests. P. ramorum is a generalist pathogen with over 100 known host species.