Project Number: 5306-22000-015-12
Project Type: Trust

Start Date: Aug 01, 2012
End Date: Jul 31, 2013

Objective:
Identify Armillaria-resistant rootstocks for almond, by first screening a set of commercially-available Prunus rootstocks, and determine the relationship between the results of our infection assay in the lab and field observations.

Approach:
Armillaria root disease is a serious problem in almond, as it cannot be solved by conventional methods. To address the need for resistant rootstocks, we developed an infection assay that is rapid and reliable. The funds we request are to use this assay to screen almond rootstocks. We have developed a target list of rootstocks, based on: published literature; input from all almond farm advisors in California; input from almond breeders; input from plant pathologists; input from nurseries.