Ability of the ash dieback pathogen to reproduce and to induce damage on its host are controlled by different environmental parameters

Ash dieback, induced by an invasive ascomycete, Hymenoscyphus fraxineus, has emerged in the late 1990s as a severe disease threatening ash populations in Europe. Future prospects for ash are improved by the existence of individuals with natural genetic resistance or tolerance to the disease and by limited disease impact in many environmental conditions where ash is common. Nevertheless, it was suggested that, even in those conditions, ash trees are infected and enable pathogen transmission. We studied the influence of climate and local environment on the ability of H. fraxineus to infect, be transmitted and cause damage on its host. We showed that healthy carriers, i.e. individuals showing no dieback but carrying H. fraxineus, exist and may play a significant role in ash dieback epidemiology. The environment strongly influenced H. fraxineus with different parameters being important depending on the life cycle stage. The ability of H. fraxineus to establish on ash leaves and to reproduce on the leaf debris in the litter (rachises) mainly depended on total precipitation in July-August and was not influenced by local tree cover. By contrast, damage to the host, and in particular shoot mortality was significantly reduced by high summer temperature in July-August and by high autumn average temperature. As a consequence, in many situations, ash trees are infected and enable H. fraxineus transmission while showing limited or even no damage. We also observed a decreasing trend of severity (leaf necrosis and shoot mortality probability) with the time of disease presence in a plot that could be significant for the future of ash dieback.