Resistance to Athelia rolfsii and Web Blotch in the U.S. Mini-core Collection

Abstract

Athelia rolfsii (=Sclerotium rolfsii) is a soilborne fungus that causes the disease commonly known as southern blight, southern stem rot, stem rot, and white mold. Despite the fact that A. rolfsii is one of the most destructive pathogens of peanut, the U.S. germplasm collection has not been evaluated for resistance to this pathogen. Therefore, 71 of the 112 accessions comprising the U.S. peanut mini-core collection were evaluated in the field for resistance to southern blight in 2016 to 2018 in Oklahoma. Moderate to low levels of southern blight were observed, but four accessions—CC125, CC208, CC559, and CC650—had low levels of disease in 2017 and 2018, the most favourable years for A. rolfsii. Ratings for web blotch, a yield-limiting foliar disease in some production areas caused by Didymella arachidicola, were also taken in 2017 and 2018, when outbreaks occurred. Five entries—CC287, CC155, CC149, CC812, and CC559—had between 10% and 20% disease in 2018, a year when over half of the mini-core accessions exhibited between 50% and 93% disease. Because cultivated peanut in the U.S. has a narrow genetic base, these results will be useful to breeders seeking additional sources of resistance to A. rolfsii and web blotch.