Evaluation of Cabbage Cultivars for Black Rot Resistance in Tift County, Georgia, 2024

Black rot, caused by Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris (Xcc), is a destructive disease in cabbage ( Brassica oleracea var. capitata), characterized by V-shaped yellow lesions at the leaf margins that progress to necrotic black tissue, often leading to plant death. This study, conducted at the University of Georgia's Tifton campus in fall 2023, evaluated nine cabbage cultivars for black rot resistance and yield performance, including total count, total weight, first harvest weight, and average head weight. ‘Melissa’ was the susceptible check, and ‘Capture’ was the resistant check. Significant differences were observed in yield metrics, with ‘TCA-607’ exhibiting the highest total, first harvest, and average weights, along with the lowest black rot severity. While the Kruskal-Wallis test indicated significant differences in disease severity among cultivars, pairwise comparisons found no significant differences between specific cultivars. These findings highlight the importance of selecting resistant cultivars like ‘TCA-607’ to maximize total yield and to enhance black rot management in commercial cabbage production.