Identification of wild Passiflora species as potential sources of resistance to the soil pathogen fusarium oxysporum f. Sp. passiflorae
Amazonia, fruit growing, phytopathology
The passion fruit tree, scientifically known as Passiflora edulis, is a tropical plant of great economic and social relevance. Brazil stands out as the world's main producer of this fruit crop. In 2021, the country harvested 693,993 tons from an area of 44,827 hectares, with an average productivity of 15,259 kg/ha. However, phytosanitary challenges caused by soil pathogens related to diseases such as collar rot and fusariosis stand out for negatively impacting the productivity and survival of passion fruit crops. In this context, this work aims to evaluate the resistance of two species of wild passion fruit, Passiflora miniata and Passiflora Cristina to infections caused by the pathogenic fungus of the Fusarium oxysporum f complex. sp. passiflorae. The experiment will be conducted using Passiflora seedlings from seeds germinated in 100 cm³ tubes, containing commercial Carolina Soil® substrate. The roots of these seedlings will be immersed in a spore suspension of Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. passiflorae, adjusted to a concentration of 1x10⁶ spores per mL⁻¹. Plant resistance will be assessed using the Mean Survival Time (TMS) and the Number of Living Plants (NPV), with assessments carried out every 24 hours, from the 3rd to the 60th day after inoculation. The design will be Completely Randomized (DIC), four genotypes P. miniata, P. Cristina, P. Virgínia (treated with F. oxysporum) and P. edulis (negative control) will be evaluated, with four replications per treatment, with six plants each. , totaling 96 plants evaluated. The data obtained will be subjected to analysis of variance and, in case of significance using the F test, the means will be compared using the Tukey test at 5% probability. The statistical software R will be used for the analyses.