A New Source of Resistance to Anthracnose (Race 2) in Watermelon

Abstract

In an anthracnose [Colletotricum obiculare (Berk. & Mont.) Arx.] screening test of 76 plant introductions (PIs), commercial Chinese watermelons [Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai], and `Crimson Sweet', PI 512385 had the highest disease resistance with a mean rating of 4.5 (1= resistant, 9 = susceptible). In a second test with PI 512385, which included material with previously reported resistance (PIs 270550,326515, 271775,271779,203551, 299379, and 189225), and `Crimson Sweet' (susceptible control), PI 512385 had significantly higher resistance than `Crimson Sweet' but was not significantly more resistant than the other PIs evaluated. PI 512385 had a mean rating of 2.2 in the second test.