ABSTRACT
This chapter presents optimism that agronomically acceptable insect-resistant cultivars will be forthcoming. The role of plant resistance in the management of soybean insect pests can be characterized by two events. The first event was the fortuitous discovery over 60 years ago that plant pubescence conferred resistance to the potato leafhopper, Empoasca fabae. The second event occurred in the late 1960s when soybean germplasm was identified with resistance to foliar feeding by the Mexican bean beetle, Epilachna varivestis Mulsant. The soybean is a member of the family Leguminosae and is thought to be native to Eastern Asia, probably originating in north and central China. The breeding strategy has been to use germplasm to obtain genes for quantitative traits. Efforts to develop advanced soybean breeding lines with multiple insect resistance and good agronomic qualities became commonplace in the United States, with resistance breeding programs underway in 10 states in 1987.
