Comparison of in vitro and in vivo evaluation of grapevine varieties to downy mildew (Plasmopara viticola) susceptibility

Numerous grapevine breeding programs are carried out in the world with the aim of getting varieties resistant to fungal diseases. The basics are often native varieties in order to preserve the authenticity of a certain area. Croatia counts more than a hundred native varieties but there is no research on their downy mildew susceptibility, which is essential for further breeding. The aim of this study is to compare the two most widely used methods for estimating the susceptibility of grapevine varieties: in vivo (field trial) and in vitro using the leaf disk assay. The research was conducted on nine genotypes: seven native varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon and Vitis riparia. In vivo disease symptoms were monitored after flowering four times in two-week intervals, and the leaf disks were evaluated once on the leaves of different developmental stages (from the 1st to 7th leaf from the shoot tip). Significant differences in susceptibility between the examined genotypes were found using both methods. By using the in vivo method significant differences were noticed during the initial terms, while the differences were reduced later on suggesting that the rate of disease development is peculiar to the genotype. In vitro method showed, together with differences between the genotypes, significant differences between the leaves of different developmental stages. The highest level of correlation between the results of these two methods (r>0, 5) was determined between the third term in vivo and the 3rd to the 6th leaf (from the shoot tip) in in vitro conditions.