Abstract
Jute stem rot caused by Macrophomina phaseolina (Tassi) Goid. is a serious disease causing severe yield losses. Therefore, for identifying sources of resistance, wild species of jute (Corchorus sp.) were screened for their resistance to stem rot. The accessions varied widely in reaction to stem rot. Of the 80 accessions, 41 accessions were resistant, 2 were moderately resistant, 8 were moderately susceptible, 15 were susceptible, and 14 were highly susceptible to stem rot disease. A high level of resistance was observed in the accessions of C. aestuans (WCIJ-100, WC1J-135, and WCIN-007), C. fascicularis (WCIJ-025, WCIJ-028, and WCIJ-116), C. pseudo-olitorius (WCIJ-034 and WCIJ-092), C. tridens (WCIJ-137), and C. trilocularis (WCIJ-106, WCIJ-022, WCIJ-033, and WCIJ-132). Accessions of C. pseudo-capsularis, WCIJ-007 (73.49%), WCIJ-031 (87.57%), and C. urticifolius, WC1J-070 (64.45%) and WCIJ-112 (88.56%) were highly susceptible. The resistant accessions identified constitute a valuable source of resistance for use in interspecific hybridization.
