Blossom blight resistance in peach: heritability and segregation in progenies from reciprocal crosses.

Blossom blight and brown rot caused by Monilinia fructicola is the most important peach disease in Brazil. Genetic resistance is a control strategy that is gaining importance in breeding programs worldwide. This study aimed to identify genotypes with higher levels of blossom blight resistance to estimate the heritability of this character; study the frequency distribution in populations; and test the possibility of maternal effect. Blossom blight susceptibility was tested in reciprocal hybridizations seedlings, as well as their parents.