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Abstract
Progeny from a hybridization of C. melo L. (PI 140471), a feral Cucumis melo, with the nematode-resistant African horned cucumber (C. metuliferus E. Mey.) (PI 292190) were screened for resistance to Meloidogyne incognita acrita Chitwood. Although C. metuliferus exhibited resistance, no resistance was observed in PI 140471 nor in the F2 generation after inoculation with a larval suspension having 600 larvae/ml. However, when grown in contact with chopped galled roots, certain progeny appeared to be resistant. Evaluation of egg mass production revealed that the resistant plants produced significantly fewer eggs than susceptible plants.
Abstract
The inheritance of resistance to cowpea chlorotic mottle virus (CCMV) in southern pea, Vigna sinensis (L.) Savi., Plant Introduction 255811, was determined in crosses with the susceptible cvs. Knuckle Purple Hull, Mississippi Silver, and Princess Anne. Segregation of F2 and backcross populations indicated that resistance to CCMV in P.I. 255811 is governed by 1 major recessive gene pair.
Abstract
‘AU-Roadside’ is a new plum cultivar developed by the Dept. of Horticulture, Alabama Agricultural Experiment Station, Auburn Univ., for growing in areas where chilling of 700 hr of temperature below 7°C occurs. ‘AU-Roadside’ has produced high yields of excellent quality fruit where certain fruit problems and diseases occur.
Abstract
Table beet (Beta vulgaris L.) ‘Ruby Queen’ seeds were either germinated in aerated water till radicle emergence or osmoconditioned (OC) in –1.2 MPa solutions of polyethylene glycol 6000 or MgSO4 for 7 days at 15°C. Seeds were sown in soil in growth chambers, infested with Pythium spp., and damping-off incidence was evaluated after 14 days. Disease incidence was reduced, compared to dry sown seeds, as a result of presowing treatments. High populations of bacteria (106–108 CFU/ml of solution) developed during the aerated soak, which protected seeds from Pythium damping-off. Seed leaching or osmoconditioning did not decrease susceptibility to damping-off in the absence of high seed bacterial populations. The fluid drilling gel was studied as a delivery system for chemical fungicides. Damping-off in dry-sown seed was reduced by incorporating thiram into a hydroxyethyl cellulose (Natrosol 250 HHW) gel. Gel alone had no effect on damping-off. In field studies, only slight improvements in stand were attributed to the incorporation of thiram in presowing treatments. Fungicide dressing of dry seed resulted in a large improvement in emergence. All presowing treatments had greater field emergence than dry-sown seeds in the absence of thiram, which was attributed to bacterial protection from damping-off.
Hand thinning is a necessary and costly management practice in peach (Prunus persica) production. Stone fruit producers are finding it increasingly difficult to find a workforce to manually thin fruit crops, and the cost of farm labor is increasing. A new “hybrid” string thinner prototype designed to adjust crop load in vase or angled tree canopies was evaluated in processing and fresh fruit plantings in varying production systems in four U.S. growing regions in 2009. Data were uniformly collected across regions to determine blossom removal rate, fruit set, labor required for follow-up green fruit hand thinning, fruit size distribution at harvest, yield, and economic impact. String thinner trials with the variable tree forms demonstrated reduced labor costs compared with hand-thinned controls and increased crop value due to a larger distribution of fruit in marketable and higher market value sizes. Blossom removal ranged from 17% to 56%, hand thinning requirement was reduced by 19% to 100%, and fruit yield and size distribution improved in at least one string-thinning treatment per experiment. Net economic impact at optimum tractor and spindle speeds was $462 to $1490 and $264 to $934 per acre for processing and fresh market peaches, respectively. Case study interviews of growers who thinned a total of 154 acres indicated that commercial adoption of string-thinning technology would likely have positive impacts on the work place environment.