Phenotypic Characterization of Canadian Barley Advanced Breeding Lines for Multiple Disease Resistance

Abstract

Fungal diseases pose a great challenge to Canadian barley production, among which are Fusarium head blight (FHB), yellow rust and scald. An integrated management approach is needed to mitigate these diseases, in which breeding for host resistance is the most effective component. Constant evaluation of advanced breeding lines for their resistance to the diseases is important for making steady progression. The main objective of this study was to screen 1,174 barley accessions, from a collaborative project between the Field Crop Development Center (FCDC), Alberta, Canada, and the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT), Mexico for their reactions to the three diseases. For FHB a 1–5 scale was employed to discard the very susceptible material in 2012 and 2013. In 2014, 514 most resistant lines having the score 1 in 2013 were re-evaluated in a replicated experiment. The most promising 166 genotypes were selected and advanced for their last evaluation in 2015 where FHB index was measured. Simultaneously, these 166 genotypes were subjected to two more experiments to test their reactions against stripe rust and scald. Eighteen two-rowed barley genotypes exhibiting broad-spectrum resistance to all of the three evaluated diseases were identified in addition to 40 lines combining FHB resistance with resistance to Mexican isolates and natural fungal population of either of the two foliar diseases and could be utilized in breeding programs aimed at improving resistance to multiple barley leaf and head blight diseases.