Li Gong, Brent Hulke, Thomas Gulya, Sam Markell and Lili Qi  Abstract: Sunflower production in North America has recently suffered economic losses in yield and seed quality from sunflower rust (Puccinia helianthi Schwein.) because of the increasing incidence and lack of resistance to new rust races. RHA 464, a newly released sunflower male fertility restorer line, is resistant to both of […]

L. Gong, T. J. Gulya, S. G. Markell, B. S. Hulke & L. L. Qi  Abstract: Few widely effective resistance sources to sunflower rust, incited by Puccinia helianthi Schwein., have been identified in confection sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.). The USDA inbred line HA-R6 is one of the few confection sunflower lines resistant to rust. A previous allelism test indicated that rust resistance genes

Brent S. Hulke, Bradley S. Bushman, Eric Watkin and Nancy J. Ehlke Abstract: Perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.) is considered a premier turfgrass and forage grass worldwide yet susceptibility to freezing damage limits its use. C-repeat binding factor (CBF) dehydration-responsive element-binding protein (DREB) related genes are considered important for the regulation of abiotic stress in plants. In this study, CBF DREB-related genes in perennial

Michael Kantar, Kevin Betts, Brent Hulke, Robert Stupar, Donald Wyse Abstract: Tubers of Helianthus tuberosus L. are dormant after production in the late fall until the next spring. In the wild, tuber dormancy is broken after exposure to winter cold, resulting in sprouting and shoot development in the spring when conditions are favorable. The dormancy period typically

Lili Qi, Thomas Jr. Gulya, Brent Hulke, Brady Vick Abstract: Sunflower rust, caused by the fungus Puccinia helianthi Schwein., was not a serious problem for many decades because of successful deployment of effective resistance genes in commercial sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) hybrids in North America. In the 1980s and early 1990s, however, a shift in virulence of the

Jarrad Prasifka, Brent Hulke Abstract:  While occasional insect pests of cultivated sunflowers may be managed by conventional or reducedrisk insecticides, the cumulative costs and risks of relying on insecticides to suppress perennial or severe pests (common in North America) call for exploration of broader pest management strategies. Recent research with the sunflower moth (Homoeosoma

Lili Qi, Brent Hulke, Brady Vick, Thomas Jr. Gulya Abstract: Rust is a serious fungal disease in the sunflower growing areas worldwide with increasing importance in North America in recent years. Several genes conferring resistance to rust have been identified in sunflower, but few of them have been genetically mapped and linked to molecular markers.

Zahirul Talukder, Brent Hulke, Lili Qi, Thomas Jr. Gulya Abstract: The need for sunflower quantitative genetics research to find and capture Sclerotinia resistance is increasing with every year that this disease results in widespread losses in yield and crop quality. Our efforts to perform association mapping with the 260 Plant Introductions (PIs) obtained from the

Zahirul Talukder, Brent Hulke, Lili Qi, Thomas Jr. Gulya Abstract: Genetic research of the sunflower research unit, USDA-ARS, in Fargo, ND, was discussed in a presentation to a group of producers, industry representatives, and scientists. The need for sunflower quantitative genetics research to find and capture Sclerotinia resistance is increasing with every year that this

Michael Kantar, Kevin Betts, Robert Stuper, Brent Hulke and Donald Wyse Abstract: The objective of this research is to use current genetics and plant breeding techniques to introgress genes for perennial habit from Helianthus tuberosus L. (2n=6x=102) into domesticated sunflower (Helianthus annuus L., 2n=2x=34). H. tuberosusis part of the secondary gene pool of sunflower and