Submitted to: HortScience
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: February 2, 1997
Publication Date: N/A
Technical Abstract: The southern root-knot nematode (Meloidogyne incognita) is a major pest of bell peppers (Capsicum annuum) in the United States. Since none of the leading bell pepper cultivars grown in the U.S. exhibit adequate levels of resistance, a breeding program was initiated to incorporate the N root-knot nematode resistance gene into commercial bell pepper germplasm. A backcross breeding procedure was used. The donor parent of the N gene was the open-pollinated, pimiento pepper cultivar Mississippi Nemaheart, and the recurrent parents were the open-pollinated bell pepper cultivars Keystone Resistant Giant and Yolo Wonder. A large number of homozygous resistant BC6 populations were evaluated in field tests in 1995, and two lines (PA-440, an isoline of Keystone Resistant Giant, and PA-453, an isoline of Yolo Wonder) were selected for further field evaluation and seed multiplication in 1996. Results of replicated field and greenhouse tests conducted in 1996 indicate that root-knot nematode resistance has been incorporated successfully in Keystone Resistant Giant and Yolo Wonder backgrounds.