Project Number: 5306-21220-005-21
Project Type: General Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Sep 01, 2012
End Date: Aug 31, 2014

Objective:
Screen pistachio cultivars with the causal agents of Panicle and Shoot Blight of Pistachio.

Approach:
Planting disease-resistant cultivars is a time-tested and sustainable approach to disease management. Based on field observations and published research on resistance to wood-canker diseases, we know that a range of resistance exists among commercial cultivars of almond and grape. We propose to improve screening assays for evaluating both commercial cultivars and USDA germplasm repositories for sources of disease resistance. In pistachio, the entire acreage of which consists of a single, suceptible cultivar, newly-released cultivars offer an opportunity for identifying new sources of resistance. Our approach is to screen plant materials from both commercial nurseries and the USDA-ARS National Clonal Germplasm Repository.