Axenic culture of Peridermium pini

Axenic cultures of Peridermium pini have been established on modified Shenk & Hildebrandt's and Harvey & Grasham's media following inoculation with naturally infected cortex tissue and artificially inoculated callus tissue of Pinus sylvestris, and with aeciospores. A small proportion of the fungal colonies obtained formed immature, mostly binucleate spores with smooth, irregularly thickened walls. Hyphae produced in culture, except those in the infrequently produced spore-proliferating colonies, were mononucleate. Actively growing cultures of P. pini were able to infect host callus tissues in vitro but no infection occurred in the inoculation tests in vivo.