Evaluation of a clonal propagation protocol to obtain replicated disease data on infection by Colletotrichum truncatum in Lens culinaris

Colletotrichum truncatum causes anthracnose, a major disease of lentil (Lens culinaris Medikus) on the Canadian prairies. Single-plant phenotyping of resistance is unreliable, thus the feasibility of using clonal propagation of individual lentil plants to generate replicated ratings was evaluated. Experiments revealed that highly resistant and highly susceptible lines had consistent disease reactions in cuttingand seedling-derived plants. However, the reaction of partially resistant lines differed and was attributed to differences in phenology between the treatments. When seedlings and replicated cuttings of an F2 population were assessed for disease, it was found that segregation patterns of resistant to susceptible plants of the cuttings were consistent with the seedlings. It is proposed that the cutting method may be more dependable than using single-plant evaluation for this pathosystem. © Crop Science Society of America.