Races and Virulence of Puccinia recondita f. sp. tritici in China in 1986. Chang- Cheng Hu, Institute of Plant Protection, Agricultural Academy of China, Ma-Lin-Wa, Beijing, The People’s Republic of China. A. P. Roelfs, Research Plant Pathologist, Cereal Rust Laboratory, USDA-ARS, University of Minnesota, St. Paul 55108. Plant Dis. 73:499-501. Accepted for publication 19 January 1989. 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, 1989. DOI: 10.1094/PD-73-0499.

During 1986, 113 isolates of Puccinia recondita f. sp. tritici were studied; 16 races were identified by the reactions of eight Chinese differentials. The most commonly identified race was CL-4 (CL = China leaf rust), constituting 29% of the isolates. Other races, in order of frequency, were CL-38, CL-34, CL-7, CL-2, CL-44, CL-3, CL-19, CL-29, CL-12, and CL-17. Five additional virulence patterns were found but not named. Sixteen wheat lines with single genes for leaf rust resistance were inoculated with 87 isolates. Virulence to genes Lr2c, Lr14a, Lr14b, Lr21, Lr17, and Lr3 was nearly universal, at 95, 92, 91, 91, 87, and 84%, respectively. Unified numeration race 13 (virulent to Lr1, Lr2a, Lr2c, and Lr3) was the most common race in China.