Downy Mildew Resistance of the Cucumber Germplasm Collection in North Carolina Field Tests

Abstract

Downy mildew [Pseudoperonospora cubensis (Berk. & Curt.) Rostov] is an important disease in most cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.) production areas of the world. Resistant cultivars are available, but higher levels are needed if yield losses are to be avoided. The objective of this experiment was to test all available plant introduction accessions, cultivars, and breeding lines (collectively referred to as cultigens) of cucumber for downy mildew resistance under field conditions in North Carolina. Cultigens were tested in 2 years and two replications under natural field epidemics of the disease. Mean ratings for downy mildew leaf damage ranged from 1.3 to 9.0 on a 0 to 9 scale. The most resistant nine cultigens originated from the U.S., and were primarily adapted cultivars or breeding lines. The most-resistant cultigens, for which multiple-year data were available, were Gy 4, `Clinton', PI 234517, `Poinsett 76', Gy 5, `Addis', M 21, M 27, and `Galaxy'. The most-susceptible cultigens for which multiple year data were available, were PI 288995, PI 176952, PI 178886, and PI 211985. We classified 17 cultigens as highly resistant (1.3 to 3.0), 87 as moderately resistant (3.3 to 5.0), 311 as moderately susceptible (5.3 to 7.0), and 248 as highly susceptible (7.3 to 9.0) for the 663 cultigens with multiple-year data. No plant introduction accessions were found to be more resistant than the most-resistant elite cultivars and breeding lines tested.