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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Pullman, Washington » Plant Germplasm Introduction and Testing Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #96621
Title: FIELD EVALUATIONS OF WILD PEAS AGAINST PEA WEEVIL.

Author
item HARDIE, DARRYL - AGRIC.WESTERN AUSTRALIA
item COLLIE, C. - AGRIC. WESTERN AUSTRALIA
item Clement, Stephen
item Elberson, Leslie

Submitted to: Arthropod Management Tests
Publication Type: Other
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/2/1998
Publication Date: N/A
Citation: N/A

Interpretive Summary: Increased global concern about the use of conventional chemical insecticides on food crops has broadened the research agenda in the USDA- Agricultural Research Service and other organizations to find new control methods that are specific, effective, and environmentally safe. Pea weevils attack peas and reduce yield by eating seeds. The introduction of weevil- resistant pea cultivars would offer pea producers an environmentally safe alternative to insecticides, which are currently used in all pea production areas to control this insect. This paper details the results of a joint Australia and U.S. project to evaluate pea germplasm for resistance to pea weevil, and identifies weevil-resistant germplasm from the USDA-ARS genebank in Pullman, Washington. This research is important because it shows how international cooperation among entomologists in Agriculture Western Australia and in the USDA-ARS can hasten the search for weevil- resistant germplasm for use in breeding programs.

Technical Abstract: Field trials in Perth, Western Australia, and near Pullman, Washington evaluated wild pea germplasm, Pisum fulvum, from genebanks for resistance to pea weevil, a key pest of cultivated peas in Australia and the United States. The weevil attacked 25 of 28 different pea lines in Perth, but rates of attack were low. Only seven lines supported development to adults, ,but very few adults emerged from seed of these lines. Four lines were evaluated in Washington, of which two supported development to the adult stage. The lines JI 849 and ATC 113 exhibited strong weevil resistance in both trials, and thus represent potential sources of resistance for breeding purposes.