The Philippines and Chinese Taipei are seeking to breed tomatoes and peppers resistant to bacterial wilt and anthracnose, the Philippine Council for Agriculture, Aquatic, and Natural Resources Research and Development of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST-PCAARRD) has disclosed.
The DOST-PCAARRD said under the three-year collaboration project between the Philippine government and Chinese Taipei, the sources of disease resistance against bacterial wilt and anthracnose are being explored.
“By the end of the project, it hopes to breed tomatoes and peppers resistant to the said diseases,” it said in a statement.
The project, “Disease Resistant Tomato and Pepper for Chinese Taipei and the Philippines” is implemented by the Institute of Plant Breeding, College of Agriculture and Food Science, University of the Philippines Los Baños (IPB-CAFS, UPLB). It is monitored by the DOST-PCAARRD.
The Council said the project is under the Manila Economic and Cultural Office – Taipei Economic Cultural Office (MECO-TECO) Joint Research Program.
Dr. Mark Angelo O. Balendres, project leader and the current head of the IPB-CAFS, UPLB, explained that bacterial wilt in production areas in the country is caused by two Ralstonia species namely, R. pseudosolanacearum and R. solanacearum.
“Preliminary results showed that at least 10 tomato lines out of 23 lines screened, exhibited high resistance and tolerance against R. pseudosolanacearum and R. solanacearum,” the DOST-PCAARRD said, citing the report of the research team.
“Also, they found that there are Colletotrichum morphotypes that can penetrate through pepper fruits even without the presence of wounds,” it added.
Colletotrichum species are pathogens causing anthracnose in economically important crops like pepper.
Blenders’ team apprised the Crops Research Division (CRD) of DOST-PCAARRD of the initial results of their study as well as status of the project.
Joining the meeting were project team members from UPLB, Dr. Tonette P. Laude as the technical evaluator, and CRD representatives led by Renelle C. Yebron, senior science research specialist and assistant head of the Monitoring and Evaluation Section.
A review on the first-year implementation of the project was conducted on April 28, 2021.