Evaluation of Resistance to Bacterial Wilt in Eggplant. H. P. Li, Visiting Scientist, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD 20705. R. W. Goth, and T. H. Barksdale. Research Plant Pathologists, Vegetable Laboratory, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, MD 20705. Plant Dis. 72:437-439. Accepted for publication 21 December 1987. This article is in the public domain and not copyrightable. It may be freely reprinted with customary crediting of the source. The American Phytopathological Society, 1988. DOI: 10.1094/PD-72-0437.

Eggplant (Solanum melongena) accessions from the U.S. Plant Introduction Collection were evaluated in a greenhouse for resistance to bacterial wilt caused by Pseudomonas solanacearum. A few of the most resistant accessions were crossed with each other. From six of these crosses, F₁ and F₂ populations were developed. A mixture of three strains of P. solanacearum race 1 was used to inoculate 21-day-old seedlings by root dipping. After 3 wk, the surviving plants were stem-inoculated with a mixture of these same three strains. A genetic advance in the level of resistance to bacterial wilt was observed in the F₁ and F₂ progenies of three crosses: PI 176761 × PI 169663, PI 176761 × PI 320505, and PI 220120 × PI 173106.