Tolerance of commercial cultivars and breeders' lines of wheat to Heterodera avenae Woll

Abstract

Many commercial cultivars and breeders' lines of wheat were ranked for tolerance to cereal eelworm by comparing their yield of grain on a site heavily infested with Heterodeva avenae with their average yield on five other areas of South Australia. Different methods for assessing tolerance were examined. A range from tolerance to intolerance was obtained, but most commercial cultivars were intolerant. Many breeders' lines were highly tolerant. A visual system for rating early growth was strongly correlated with final yield. Resistance and tolerance were not related.