Detailed research on apple virus initiated in China from 1978. The species of main apple viruses have been identified and the characteristics of these viruses are discussed in this paper. These viruses include Apple mosaic virus, Apple scar skin viroid, Apple green crinkle virus, Apple chlorotic leaf spot virus, Apple stem pitting virus and Apple stem grooving virus. The main detection technologies are also described in this paper, including indicator plant, electron microscopy, serology method and molecular biological techniques.
