Characterization of new commercial sugarcane cultivars against Diatraea saccharalis

BUDEGUER ISA, R; PÉREZ, M.L.D.P.; PERERA, M. F.; GASTAMINZA, G.; OSTENGO, S

Hyderabad

Congreso; ISSCT XXXI Congress; 2023

Information on the susceptibility of newly released sugarcane (Saccharum spp. hybrids) cultivars to pests and diseases is a key aspect in breeding programs. In addition, this information is useful to select cultivars to obtain transgenic sugarcane events resistant to the stem borer Diatraea saccharalis (F.). The aim of this work was to characterize the oviposition preference and the damage caused by D. saccharalis in two sugarcane cultivars under greenhouse conditions. Pots with cultivars TUC 95-10 and TUC 03-12 were placed in screen cages where D. saccharalis adults (2:1 female: male ratio) were released. The number of egg masses per plant was evaluated daily for up to 15 days. At 30 days, the index of infestation expressed as the percentage of bored internodes and the length of D. saccharalis tunnels were measured. Differences in the number of egg masses per plant were observed between the two cultivars, being higher in TUC 03-12. Differences were also detected for the index of infestation and the length of tunnels; however, TUC 95-10 was the most affected variety. Results confirm that there are differences among sugarcane cultivars developed in Argentina in terms of oviposition preference and larval damage by D. saccharalis.