A University of Florida scrientist has found that some varieties of the impatiens heyday resist the deadly downy mildew disease better than others .
Many the great unwashed love to plant impatiens – also known as the “ Touch - Me - Not ” — in their gardens , yard and patios because of their bright , colourful flowers and permissiveness to shade , said Zhanao Deng . The UF / IFAS cosmetic flora breeder leads research to chance out how he can bolster the impatiens diligence by extinguish the downy mildew pathogen .
“ Downy mildew is a highly destructive disease in a wide range of crop worldwide , not just impatiens , ” said Deng , a UF / IFAS environmental horticulture prof at the Gulf Coast Research and Education Center . The disease can do extended harm to lettuce , basil , melon vine , squash and grapes , among others .
Several outbreaks of impatiens downy mold have been account in Europe , Australia and North America . The disease has translated to step-down in sweeping value of impatiens in the United States from about $ 150 million in 2005 to $ 65 million in 2015 .
Through extensive examination , Deng and his research squad found two New Guinea impatiens varieties that can resist downy mildew throughout the heyday ’s entire life , even when their tiny flora first come out from seed . To let speedy examination of impatiens varieties and facts of life stuff , the investigator develop a method acting to immunize impatiens , and they ground which variety are more resistant or more susceptible to the pathogen when impatiens plants are at their other increase degree .
They tested 16 garden impatiens and 16 New Guinea impatiens varieties in Florida . Their finding , as just published in the daybook Nature Horticulture Research , showed all New Guinea impatiens mixed bag resist the pathogen after their first reliable leave have emerged .
“ However , many of these New Guinea impatiens varieties have an Achilles ’ heel : They are susceptible to flossy mould at the degree when the young plants first emerged from seeds , ” Deng said . “ More significantly , we receive two New Guinea impatiens varieties that did n’t have this exposure to downy mould . They had impregnable resistance even when they first come forth from seeds . These motley can be very important sources of resistance to downy mildew . ”
Findings from the new research are decisive as nurseries and plant life purchaser eye disease - tolerant impatiens flowers as the industrial plant makes a comeback . Read the complete article at http://blogs.ifas.ufl.edu/.For more info : University of FloridaGainesville , FL 32611(352 ) 392-3261www.ufl.edu
