Functional Traits of Olive Varieties and Their Relationship with the Tolerance Level towards Verticillium Wilt

Verticillium wilt of olive (VWO), caused by the soil-borne pathogen Verticillium dahliae, is considered one of the most important diseases affecting this tree crop. One of the best VWO management measures is the use of tolerant cultivars. Remarkably, no information is available about olive functional traits and their potential relationship with tolerance to V. dahliae. Twenty-five selected functional traits (for leaf, stem, root and whole plant) were evaluated in six olive varieties differing in their VWO tolerance level to identify possible links between this phenotype and functional traits’ variation. High intervarietal diversity was found among cultivars and several functional traits were related with VWO tolerance. Tolerant varieties showed higher leaf area, dry matter content (leaf, stem and plant) and mass fraction for stems, but lower for leaves. Significant differences were also detected for root functional traits, tolerant cultivars displaying larger fine root diameter and lignin content but smaller specific length and area of thick and fine roots. Correlations were found among functional traits both within varieties and between levels of tolerance/susceptibility to VWO. Associations were observed between biomass allocation, dry matter content and VWO tolerance. The most relevant difference between tolerant and susceptible cultivars was related to root system architecture.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Cardoni, Martina, Mercado-Blanco, Jesús, Villar, Rafael
Other Authors:	Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (España)
Format:	artículo biblioteca
Published:	Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute 2021-05-27
Subjects:	Biomass allocation, Breeding for resistance, Dry matter content, Leaf area, Lignin, Root architecture, SRA (specific root area), SRL (specific root length), Verticillium dahliae,
Online Access:	http://hdl.handle.net/10261/267914 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100011033 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100000780 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100011011 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100004837 http://dx.doi.org/10.13039/501100010198
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