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Management of Drought Stress to Improve Field Screening of Peanuts for Resistance to Aspergillus flavus. V. K. Mehan, Groundnut Pathology, Units, Legumes Program, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru P.O. 502 324, A.P., India; R. C. Nageswara Rao(2), D. McDonald(3), and J. H. Williams(4). (2)(4)Groundnut Physiology, Units, Legumes Program, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru P.O. 502 324, A.P., India; (3)Groundnut Pathology, Units, Legumes Program, International Crops Research Institute for the Semi-Arid Tropics (ICRISAT), Patancheru P.O. 502 324, A.P., India. Phytopathology 78:659-663. Accepted for publication 20 November 1987. Copyright 1988 The American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/Phyto-78-659.

Drought stress during late stages of pod maturation in an irrigated peanut crop during the postrainy season significantly increased the amount of seed infection by Aspergillus flavus. A line-source sprinkler irrigation system imposing a drought-stress gradient was used for field screening of peanut genotypes for resistance to seed infection by A. flavus. A significant, positive, linear relationship was found between water deficit (drought intensity) and seed infection in peanut genotypes. Genotypic differences for seed infection by A. flavus were evident at all levels of drought-stress, but, under the more severe drought stress conditions, the genotypes resistant to A. flavus had low but positive levels of seed infection giving improved statistical precision.