IAC launches multi-nematode resistant coffee rootstock

National coffee farming now relies on a new rootstock that is multi-resistant to nematodes, developed by the Agronomic Institute (IAC), in Campinas, using new technology. The IAC Herculândia rootstock is the result of the recombination of five clonal cultivars of Coffea canephora called IAC WG, IAC FEBS, IAC PM, IAC LCCBF and IAC AR.

The IAC Herculândia rootstock presents simultaneous resistance to the nematodes Meloidogyne exigua, M. incognita and M. paranaensis. The launch will be this Thursday, November 16th, at 14pm, at the IAC headquarters, in Campinas, when relevant people who contributed to the development of coffee farming in Brazil will be honored.

“The technology adopted involves the recombination of these five clones which, when planted together, interbreed, generating seeds from the rootstock of the rootstock cultivar. This is the first time that this selection method has been used in Brazil, in coffee growing”, says Oliveiro Guerreiro Filho, researcher at IAC, linked to the São Paulo Agribusiness Technology Agency (APTA), of the Secretariat of Agriculture and Supply of the State of São Paulo. .

According to Guerreiro, as the IAC Herculândia rootstock is multi-resistant to the three species of nematodes, any susceptible cultivar of Arabica coffee can be used as scion in cultivation in soils infested by these parasites.

The objective of the research, which began around 35 years ago, was to bring together on a single rootstock a high frequency of plants simultaneously resistant to the three species of nematodes. This is because these three types can frequently occur simultaneously. Therefore, coffee farming lacks a material that can resist this condition. On average, the presence of nematodes in coffee crops causes losses of 20% in Brazil.

“We used five clones because we considered it to be the most appropriate strategy as it would increase the chances of the plants flowering simultaneously, an essential condition for seed formation”, he explains.

According to the scientist, using resistant rootstock is the most suitable way to control nematodes. Those who do not adopt this technology will sooner or later have to resort to chemical or biological products, which generally have limited efficiency in controlling nematodes.

The Meloidogyne exigua species forms galls on the roots, reducing the ability to absorb nutrients. This species is less aggressive and, for this reason, in most cases, the diagnosis is made late. It is also the most widespread in the country, being found in practically most of the producing regions.

The other species are much more aggressive and can destroy the root system of plants. In these cases, the damage is much higher. Crops often need to be eradicated.

The species M. incognita and M. paranaensis have long been present in the North of Paraná and in São Paulo, Alta Paulista and the Garça and Marília region. “Currently, these species are also causing serious problems in Mogiana, in São Paulo, as well as in several Arabica coffee producing regions, in Minas Gerais, especially in the Cerrado Mineiro”, says the IAC researcher.

Oliveiro Guerreiro Filho tells us about three and a half decades of studies to arrive at this unprecedented product in Brazil and the world. The teams selected multi-resistant plants with the aim of adding agronomic characteristics such as production, vigor and fruit size, in addition to resistance.

“We evaluated more than 3,5 plants to arrive at these 5 parental clones of the IAC Herculândia rootstock, a cultivar of Coffea canephora.” We pollinated more than 100 thousand flowers to evaluate compatibility between clones”, he summarizes.

Tributes

The name of each clonal cultivar is composed of the acronym IAC, which begins the name of the cultivars developed by the Agronomic Institute, and the acronyms using the first letter of each name of the honored professionals, respectively: Wallace Gonçalves (IAC WG), Francisco Eduardo Bernal Simões (IAC FEBS), Paulo Makimoto (IAC PM, Luiz Carlos Camargo Barbosa Ferraz (IAC LCCBF) and Ailton Rocha Monteiro (ARM).