Rubber tree crown clones resistant to South American leaf blight for cultivation in the humid tropical Amazon

The objective of this study was to evaluate the performance of eleven clones of rubber tree crown of Hevea pauciflora × H. guianensis, H. guianensis × H. pauciflora, H. pauciflora × H. rigidifolia and H. pauciflora, resistant to fungi Microcyclus ulei, causing the South American leaf blight (SALB). Scions were grafted onto CNS AM 7905 (primary selection of H. brasiliensis), and grown for 14-years period in the humid tropical Amazon. Dry rubber yield over seven-years, plant nutritional status, anatomical and physiological characteristics of the latex, and methods of tapping (oriental and amazonian) were evaluated. The crown clones of CPAA C 01, 6 and 45 produced, on average, more than 1.4 t ha-1 year- 1 of dry rubber, followed by clones CPAA C 13, 14, 15, 16 and 20, with yields above 1.0 t ha-1 year- 1, while the clones CPAA C 18, CPAA C 33 and CBA 2 had yields lower than 0.9 t ha-1 year- 1. The Pi and Mg concentrations in latex and leaf K and Cu concentrations were associated with the productivity of clones CPAA C 01, 06 and 45, being important traits for selection of rubber tree crown clones. In commercial plantation, the oriental method of tapping is more efficient than the amazonian method.

Hevea spp.; Microcyclus ulei; yield; nutritional status; anatomical and physiological characteristics of latex