Effects of varying levels of cleistogamy on natural smut infection in oats

Smut of oats, caused by Ustilago avenae, is an important disease in organic seed production and resistance breeding via inoculation elaborate routine oat breeding. The life cycle smuts known to depend on open flowers, for example, spores ssp. need settle inside the flower start a next cycle. Increasing level cleistogamy as way avoid initial infections instead selecting genetic pathogens has previously been proposed speed up and/or improve nuda barley. In present study, this concept avoidance infection was evaluated oat, using three experiments with 25, 64 49 lines, tested first year artificial at one or two sites smut resistance, second saved seeds incidence (SI). Generalized linear models were fitted analyze effects environment, susceptibility (SUSC), index (CI), pressure during flowering represented portion smutted panicles year. results confirmed that reduces derived 68%, influenced environmental factors. We conclude can, addition be used manage systems. For usage physiological types required reduce should studied more detail.