Armillaria root rot is one of the most dangerous diseases of tree root systems in Poland, occurring both in coniferous and deciduous stands. The greatest economic losses in coniferous stands cause Armillaria ostoyae, on the other hand Armillaria gallica is considered to be the most important species infecting deciduous stands. The aim of the research was to define diversity of Armillaria species settling the chosen oak stands in the Górzyska Forest Range (Smolarz Forest District, Szczecin Regional Directorate of State Forests) by means of commonly used, in the molecular biology area, polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restricted fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) techniques. Rhizomorphs were collected from soil and the root collar of 74 oaks characterized by differential loss in assimilation apparatus. The analysis of IGS region of the ribosomal DNA in the PCR-RFLP technique allows to claim that dominant Armillaria species on the study area was Armillaria gallica.

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