Good news for green bean growers: Golden mosaic virus is about to meet its match.

Believed to be spread by a whitefly, golden mosaic virus first reared its head in bean crops in Dade County, Fla., in 1993, and now has spread to Puerto Rico.

Three newly released snap bean lines resist the golden mosaic virus--the first commercial snap or dry beans developed in this country that can fend off the costly crop disease. The new high-yielding lines also resist 87 known races of the bean rust fungus, Uromyces appendiculatus.

The new lines were released by scientists with USDA’s Agricultural Research Service in conjunction with researchers in Florida and Puerto Rico.

Called Beldade-RGMR -4, -5, and -6, the new lines have white seeds and flat pods that are about eight inches long. Limited amounts of seed are available to breeders.

Scientific contact: J. Rennie Stavely, Molecular Plant Pathology Lab, Beltsville, MD, telephone (301) 504-6600