All-India Coordinated Rice Improvement Project Rajendranagar, Hyderabad-500030(A.P.)
A method for the identification of resistant plants to gall midge and brown planthopper by subjecting the same plants to simultaneous infestation by both insects was tested with known susceptible and resistant varieties. The simultaneous testing procedure was effective and it could provide a method for quick identification of plants possessing resistance to both brown planthopper and gall midge.
Difference in symptom expression of gall midge affected plants was observed. Increased tillering habit was not noted in ‘Ptb 33’, a moderately susceptible variety to gall midge. ‘Ptb 33’ was found to be a better donor for brown planthopper resistance than ‘Pandi’. Reaction of varieties to brown planthopper could be better assessed based on seedling mortality 21 days after ‘T(N)1’ was killed. The importance of the new screening procedure and the implications of the different methods of approach in the development of multiple resistant lines are briefly discussed.
