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Completion of Life Cycles of Puccinia hordei and Uromyces scillarum on Detached Leaves of Their Hosts. E. Lumbroso, Assistant, Faculty of Life Sciences, the Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; Y. Anikster(2), J. G. Moseman(3), and I. Wahl(4). (2)(4)Instructor, and Professor, respectively, Faculty of Life Sciences, the Tel-Aviv University, Tel-Aviv, Israel; (3)Chairman, Plant Genetics and Germplasm Institute, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD 20705. Phytopathology 67:941-944. Accepted for publication 16 November 1976. Copyright © 1977 The American Phytopathological Society, 3340 Pilot Knob Road, St. Paul, MN 55121. All rights reserved.. DOI: 10.1094/Phyto-67-941.

Puccinia hordei was cultivated through its pycnial and aecial stages on detached green leaves or segments of fleshy bulb scales of Ornithogalum narbonense or O. brachystachys. The uredial and telial stages were cultured on detached leaves of Hordeum spontaneum or H. vulgare. The detached green leaves were maintained on cotton pads soaked in 40 μg/ml benzimidazole solution and the bulb scales were maintained on water-saturated pads. The duration of a cycle averaged about 40 days. Germination of dormant teliospores was induced by floating them on water for 48-72 hr. Longevity of the gametophytic stage, ordinarily limited to 14-21 days on detached green leaves, was extended for over 2 mo on fleshy bulb scales maintained at 18-20 C, and for 5 mo on those kept at 5 C. Prolonged culture of pycnia facilitated crossing and hybridizing of rust fungus isolates virulent or avirulent on leaves of the main and alternate hosts. The microcyclic Uromyces scillarum was cultured from telia to telia on fleshy bulb scales of its host, Leopoldia maritima, and formed telial clusters similar to those that appear in nature on the host’s green leaves. The same results were obtained by inoculation of bulb scale of Urginea maritima with germinating teliospores of Uromyces scillarum isolated from the green leaves of that host.