NMSU research team aims to improve green chile immunity to root rot

LAS CRUCES, N.M. (KVIA) -- New Mexico State University Associate Professor Stephanie Walker earned a $759,000 grant for research to develop a new strain of green chile that's resistant to a damaging disease.

The goal of the project is to create a strain of green chile that is resistant to Phytophthora capsici, a disease Walker says can lead to root rot.

One of Walker's collaborators at NMSU, Denise Coon, told ABC-7 the disease is soil born and moves with water to any part of the chile. It can kill the entire crop, which has been an issue in the Southwest for more than a century.

The team is partnering with Cornell University vegetable breeder Michael Mazourek. His team has done similar work with a strain of bell peppers.

The project plan involves cross-breeding the bell peppers with the green chiles. The Cornell team will handle most of the lab testing while the NMSU team handles most of the field testing.

Walker's grant came from the national Institute of Food and Agriculture.