Breeding for Wilt and Root rot resistance in Castor

Wilt and root rot are the major devastating diseases of castor. Chemical control of castor wilt and root rot has not been effective and economical as the pathogen is soil and seed borne. Hence resistance breeding is basic need for crop improvement. Development of resistant castor varieties against wilt & root rot complex will be a visible approach. Wilt and root rot are governed by monogenic and oligogenic gene respectively. So identification of molecular markers linked to the wilt and root rot in the genotype reported would be helpful to pyramiding of gene through marker assisted backcross breeding for developing high yielding wilt and root rot resistance hybrids in India.