Expression of resistance to downy mildew at cotyledon and adult plant stages in Brassica oleracea L.

This research compared the expression of resistance to downy mildew at cotyledon and adult plant stages in seven Brassica oleracea genotypes against two P. parasitica isolates of different virulence. Seven day old seedlings were dual inoculated under controlled environment by depositing two 10 μl droplets of a spore suspension of a different isolate on each cotyledon and the interaction phenotype (IP) evaluated 7 days later using a 0–5 scale of increasing susceptibility. The seedlings were transplanted to 16 cm pots and grown in the greenhouse for 110 days (15 to 28 leaves). Adult plants were tested using a single leaf inoculation method that allowed the same plant to be simultaneously inoculated with the two P. parasitica isolates. Leaves were scored 10 days after inoculation using a 0–5 scale of increasing susceptibility. The inoculation of the same plant with the two isolates produced different combinations of cotyledon (CT) and adult-plant (AP) interaction-phenotype according to the genotype. CrGC 3.1 was susceptible at CT and AP stages, ‘Algarvia’ resistant at CT and AP stages, and broccoli ‘A’ susceptible at CT and resistant at AP stage against the two isolates. ‘Murciana’ and broccoli ‘B’ were differential at CT and AP stages. Savoy and Shetland cabbages were differential at CT stage and resistant to both isolates as adult plants. Cotyledon resistance could not be used to predict adult-plant resistance since the two types of resistance were very poorly correlated. Resistance can be race specific either at cotyledon or at adult-plant stage. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.