Late blight caused by Phytophthora infestans is an important disease of potato, tomato and pear melon in South America. Present literature suggests that this disease was first found in Peru and other Andean countries in the 1920s. We have found written evidences referring to the disease on potatoes in Peru, Bolivia and Colombia published long before 1845. Among these evidences are manuscripts published in 1590 by Acosta, in 1762 in the Transactions of the Viceroy of Santa Fe de Bogota, and in 1845 by Acosta, Pazos, and D'Orbigny. In 1868, Garcia-Merino described the disease on potato, tomato and pear melon in Peru. In 1890 Lagerheim reported the susceptibility of pear melon, and S. caripense (pear melon wild relative) in Ecuador. In 1845, Decaisne in Belgium, and Matens in The Netherlands, reported that the recently imported varieties from Peru: "lima", "peruviennes" and "cordillieres", were the first that succumbed to the disease in 1843. There are several other written reports nothing occurrence of the disease in the Andes of South America previous to the 1920s. [AS]
