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Forty strains of Pseudomonas avellanaeisolated from hazelnut (Corylus avellanaL.) trees in the Langhe district of Italy were compared with 15 strains collected from various geographic areas. All strains were assessed by rep-PCR genomic fingerprinting using ERIC, REP and BOX primer sets. Cluster analysis was performed by means of UPGMA. To check the possible differential virulence of the strains, pathogenicity tests were carried out by inoculating leaf scars of hazelnut trees in early autumn. Cluster analysis indicated that, during a four-year study, at least five groups of strains were isolated from different hazelnut orchards located in the small district of Langhe. Two groups were isolated from the same twig. Such strains showed around 20% similarity with other P. avellanaestrains collected from northern Greece and central Italy. The strains from Langhe were less aggressive to hazelnut than strains from northern Greece and central Italy. These results and previous genomic characterizations indicate a possible correlation between genomic profile type and regional geographic distribution of P. avellanaestrains. In addition, the genetic variability found in the strains from Langhe indicates that such populations are older than the more homogenous P. avellanaepopulations from other regions.