Evaluation location: New York, United States
The straw test described by Petzoldt and Dickson (1996) was used to screen 10 plants of each of the 89 sample core accessions for reaction to white mold in a single Geneva, New York greenhouse environment maintained at 20 to 28 degrees C and a 14- to 16 hour day length. Each plant represented a replicate and the replications were completely randomized. Inoculation took place 28 days after planting. Plants were watered and fertilized for normal growth. The growing tip of the main stem of a single plant, sown in a 10 to 15 cm diameter pot containing a soil less potting mix (Sunshine No. 1) was removed and a plastic straw containing an agar plug of growing mycelium of the pathogen was fitted over the cut stem. Eight days after inoculation, the white mold reaction was scored from 1-9 (1= no symptom to 9=collapsed plant)