Resistance of seedling white clover cultivars to redlegged earth mite <i>Halotydeus destructor</i>

Abstract

Two glasshouse pot bioassays were conducted in Perth, Western Australia, in 1994 which compared the seedling resistance of subterranean clover (Trifolium subterraneum L.) with New Zealand white clover (Trifolium repens L.) cultivars ‘Grasslands Huia’, ‘Grasslands Tahora’, ‘Prop’, ‘Grasslands Pitau’ and ‘Grasslands Kopu’ to redlegged earth mite (Halotydeus destructor) (Acarina: Penthaleidae). Plant wet weights, mite development and survival and plant damage scores were monitored. Subterranean clover was more resistant to redlegged earth mite than white clover in both experiments. The white clover cultivars, ‘Grasslands Pitau’ and ‘Grasslands Kopu’ had lower cotyledon damage scores and higher yields than the other white clover cultivars.