Phytophthora blight resistance

Phytophthora blight is a serious new disease affecting bell pepper production in Georgia. Depending upon which organ is affected, phytophthora blight can cause defoliation, stem girdling, or collapse of the plant from root loss. Phytophthora infection is enhanced by warm temperatures and frequent rainfall, conditions that are common in the Southeast. UGA horticulturists established a breeding program to develop new P. capsici-resistant bell pepper cultivars. They screened mroe than 2,000 pepper accessions (lines) from the USDA pepper collection housed in Griffin. Two accessions, PI 210237 and PI 640532, demonstrated consistently high levels of resistance to root rot. These two accessions are potential sources of resistance genes that can be incorporated into commercial bell pepper cultivars.