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Managing the Race Structure of Phytophthora parasitica var. nicotianae with Cultivar Rotation

Deployment of tobacco cultivars with single-gene, complete resistance to race 0 of the tobacco black shank pathogen, Phytophthora parasitica var. nicotianae, has resulted in a rapid increase in the occurrence of race 1 of the pathogen in North Carolina. Cultivar-rotation studies were conducted in three fields to assess how different levels and types of resistance affected the race structure and population dynamics of the pathogen when deployed in fields initially containing single or mixed races of the pathogen. In a field with both races present, a high level of partial resistance in cv. K 346 was most effective in reducing disease and decreasing the proportion of race 1 in the pathogen population. The deployment of complete resistance in cv. NC 71 resulted in intermediate levels of disease control and race 1 became the predominate race. The cv. K 326, with a low level of partial resistance, had the highest levels of disease, and race 0 was the dominant race recovered. In a field where no race 1 was detected initially, disease incidence was high with the use of partial resistance. Complete resistance was very effective in suppressing disease, but race 1 was recovered after only one growing season. By the end of the third growing season, race 1 was recovered from most treatments where single-gene resistance was deployed. A high level of partial resistance was most effective in suppressing disease in a field where race 1 initially was the predominant race. A rotation between cultivars with single-gene resistance and cultivars with a high level of partial resistance should provide the most effective approach to black shank management. This rotation will reduce disease incidence and minimize race shifts in the pathogen and, over time, should prolong the usefulness of the Ph gene for black shank control in commercial production of tobacco.