Pine wilt disease, caused by the pine wood nematode (PWN), Bursaphelenchus xylophilus, is one of the most threatening forest diseases. The only known host in Portugal is the maritime pine, Pinus pinaster. One of the strategies to control this disease is the establishment of resistant hosts. Thus, a pioneer breeding programme for resistance to this disease has already been initiated in Portugal. Simultaneously, and considering that the breeding efforts for disease resistance should also be focused in populations improved for other traits, a study of the variability in response to the PWN inoculation in a Portuguese population already improved for volume and stem form, was considered. Inoculating different PWN concentrations in two year-old maritime pines, from the already improved population, was the methodology used in this study. The results confirmed the existence of variability in response of the tested families, the effects of plant height and stem diameter, and the effects of the different inoculum concentrations applied in this study. The results obtained allowed also increased knowledge of the inoculation techniques. This knowledge will be used to test the progenies from the breeding programme for resistance, already initiated.

Mestrado em Gestão e Conservação de Recursos Naturais - Instituto Superior de Agronomia / Universidade de Évora