Abstract

S. O. W. M. Reuben and D. J. I. Mtenga

Trials were carried out at the Tanzania Coffee Research Institute (TaCRI) from September 2006 to April 2007 and at the Coffee Research Center (CIFC), in Portugal, from March 2007 to June 2007, in order to evaluate the variation in resistance to Coffee Leaf Rust (CLR), Hemileia vastatrix, within and among four Coffea arabica varieties. The varieties tested were ‘Bourbon’, ‘Compacts’ (‘Catimor’), ‘Rume Sudan’ and ‘Hibrido de Timor’ obtained from TaCRI germplasm. Local CLR isolates were used in the trials at TaCRI, while at CIFC, four CLR isolates 1126, 1427, 2191 and 5A, were used. There was no significant (P≤0.05) variation among accessions of Hibrido de Timor and Compacts, whereas significant variation was observed among accessions of Rume Sudan and Bourbon against CLR isolates at CIFC. Significant variation was observed in Rume sudan and Compacts varieties against the local isolate. There was significant (P≤0.05) variation in resistance to CLR among the varieties against all isolates. Accessions PNI086, PNI088 and CR127, of Compacts variety, and VCE 1594 and VCE 1587, of Hibrido de Timor, showed exceptionally high resistance. It is possible to select within the accessions of a coffee variety and among the varieties tested to obtain better genotypes.