Investment

Rusts are have the potential to cause significant losses for Australia wheat growers. These potential losses are largely prevented through the incorporation of sources of genetic resistance into varieties. This project aims to continue the successful incorporation of rust resistance from related species into wheat and distribute the elite lines to wheat breeding programs. Although stem rust resistance is the major focus, the uncultivated relatives of wheat also carry valuable resistance genes against other diseases such as leaf and stripe rusts. Additional screening for resistance to these other diseases is undertaken by the University of Sydney as a partner organisation in the Australian Cereal Rust Control Program.