CONICET | Buscador de Institutos y Recursos Humanos

The availability of imidazolinone (IMI) resistant cultivars has provided an effective option for weed control in wheat production systems. IMI herbicides control several weeds, including Avena fatua and Lolium multiflorum that are the most frequent grass weeds in wheat crops of Argentine Pampas. The aim of this study was to develop a soil-less method that allows a rapid phenotyping of IMI resistance in wheat. Nine wheat cultivars differing in IMI resistance were evaluated through a between-paper germination method. Herbicide concentrations required to reduce shoot and root length by 50% for resistant cultivars were > 75-fold that of the susceptible cultivars. The response of resistant and susceptible commercial cultivars was assessed in the between-paper and a top-paper methods at 100 µM imazamox as discriminating dose. The Z´-factor was calculated for evaluation of the quality of the screening methods. Both germination methods showed Z´-factors > 0 indicating that the assays were appropriate but the between-paper method allowed to save space in the growth chamber. The germination methods were useful for distinguishing between susceptible and resistant plants carrying at least one resistance gene. The rapid, simple and cost-effective method described in the present study could be a potential tool when selecting for IMI resistance in wheat in breeding programs.