1Indian Grassland and Fodder Research Institute, Jhansi-284 003
Screening of thirty-five genotypes representing seven annual Medicago species along with five entries of common lucerne, for resistance to lucerne weevil under laboratory conditions revealed significant differences at both intra and inter specific levels, in respect of leaf damage and body weight gain of weevil larvae. The naturally occurring tetraploid (2n=4x=32) species, M. seutellataM. rugosa and diploid species M. murex exhibited maximum antibiosis followed by M. truncatula. Resistant donors of the diploid and tetraploid species utilized in intra and inter specific hybridization programme revealed the cross compatibility of M. truncatula × M. littoralis and M. intertexta × M. ciliaris. Whereas the tetraploid species M. scutellata and M. rugosa hybridized neither with common lucerne nor with each other indicating a remote possibility of interspecific gene transfer from one species to the another.
