Shifts in host plant resistance to the cabbage aphid (Brevicoryne brassicae) exhibited by Brussels sprout plants

Abstract

SUMMARYSeven cultivars of Brussels sprouts from different sources were tested for their relative degrees of resistance to the cabbage aphid (Brevicoryne brassicae) by estimating the Potential Increase Rate of aphid infestations. The cultivars Winter Harvest and Early Half Tall were selected as susceptible and resistant respectively and tested further. Glasshouse experiments indicated that the resistance of Winter Harvest to the aphids increased with age.These relative levels of resistance were confirmed by population counts in the field. Aphid numbers were initially significantly higher on Winter Harvest than on Early Half Tall although significance was lost as the season progressed at a time when the characteristics responsible for the resistance mechanism ceased to be distinguishable between the two cultivars.Analysis of the amino acid content of leaf tissues collected at monthly intervals through the aphid season enabled ‘risk rating’ predictions of aphid resistance to be made. These conformed with the shifts towards greater resistance as the plants aged noted in the glasshouse trials and endorsed the part played by amino acids in the mechanism of resistance. Total amino acid concentrations reached a peak during September and October then declined with generally lower levels of amino acids in Early Half Tall than Winter Harvest. This cultivar also possessed a greater concentration of those amino acids known to be favourable to B. brassicae although the difference between the two had diminished considerably by the end of September.Analyses of the mustard oil glycoside levels in mature glasshouse‐grown plants did not indicate a difference between the cultivars.