Development of variable number of tandem repeats typing schemes for Ralstonia solanacearum, the agent of bacterial wilt, banana Moko disease and potato brown rot

► Tools are proposed for fine-scale genotyping of the plant pathogen R. solanacearum. ► Twenty-six loci VNTR were detected, amplified and multiplexed. ► We propose phylotype-specific MLVA schemes for R. solanacearum phylotype I, IIA and IIB, III, IV. ► Most of the loci follow the stepwise mutation model ► MLVA is significantly more discriminatory than reference egl typing on monomorphic ecotypes.