Response of rocket salad germplasm (<i>Eruca</i> and <i>Diplotaxis</i> spp.) to major pathogens causing damping-off, wilting and leaf spot diseases

In the present study, 26 accessions of rocket salad belonging to four species (<i>Eruca sativa</i> Mill., <i>Diplotaxis tenuifolia</i> (L.) DC<i>.</i>, <i>Diplotaxis muralis</i> (L.) DC. and <i>Erucastrum spp</i>.) were tested for resistance to damping-off, wilting and leaf spot disease causal agents. High susceptibility to <i>Rhizoctonia solani</i> was detected in all accessions while variability in rocket seedling susceptibility for <i>Sclerotinia</i> assays was observed. Susceptibility to wilting caused by the fungus <i>Fusarium oxysporum</i> f. sp. <i>raphani</i> was tested. <i>E. sativa</i> varieties exhibited a lower severity degree associated to yellowing-related symptoms compared to <i>D. tenuifolia</i>. Resistance assay using the bacterium <i>Xanthomonas campestris</i> pv. <i>campestris</i> was also performed. Five <i>E. sativa</i> varieties showed a disease incidence lower than 60% while all the <i>D. tenuifolia</i> accessions, showed a susceptibility of 100%. The present study represents a step towards the identification of genetic resources useful in breeding for the selections of novel resistant varieties.