title: Selection for resistance to Cochliobolus sativus in tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.).
abstract: Cochliobolus sativus (Ito and Kurib.) Drechsl. ex Dastur is a major foliar pathogen of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) which can greatly reduce the quantity and quality of forages available for animal consumption. A greenhouse screening program was initiated to determine the inheritance of resistance to C. sativus in tall fescue over several cycles of mass selection. Resistance to C. sativus in four tall fescue cultivars was increased with 2-3 cycles of mass selection. Realized heritabilities were low to moderate (0.04 to 0.58) indicating that environmental influences on the expression of resistance are quite high. Variances were unchanged by selection, indicating that further improvement should be possible. However, progress with mass selection can be expected to be slow. Lesion size was decreased in each cultivar by selecting for lesion coverage. Lesion size, being independent of inoculum load and therefore less subject to environmental variation, should be considered as an additional selection criteria to improve the rate of progress.
authors.affiliation: Department of Agronomy, Mississippi State University, 39762, Mississippi State, MS, USA.
authors.forename: M A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Watson
authors.forename: S D
authors.initials: SD
authors.lastname: Linscombe
authors.forename: L E
authors.initials: LE
authors.lastname: Trevathan