Project Number: 1907-22000-017-07
Project Type: Specific Cooperative Agreement

Start Date: Sep 20, 2005
End Date: Sep 19, 2010

Objective:
The overall objective of this cooperative research project is to reduce root and bulb rot and vascular wilt disease losses in greenhouse floriculture. Specific objectives include: 1) Tracking isolates of Pythium spp. within flower production greenhouses with the goal of refining and focusing integrated management actions, 2) Enhancing our knowledge of the etiology of Phytophthora diseases of floriculture crops, 3) Developing a better understanding of biological and cultural factors that affect pathogenicity of root rot, bulb rot, and vascular wilt pathogens and the development of the diseases they cause, and 4) Developing new tools for management of root rot, bulb rot, and vascular wilt diseases of floriculture crops.

Approach:
Project objectives will be accomplished through establishment of an interdisciplinary research team bringing together the skills of plant and insect pathologists, plant pathologists, plant physiologists, and greenhouse horticulturists. Root rot, bulb rot and vascular wilt diseases cause significant losses of floricultural crops year after year, and often sharply reduce crop quality. For common greenhouse resident pathogens such as Pythium, knowing the species identity and the population from which the pathogen came are crucial pieces of information needed to trace the organism to its origin in the production facility and then to formulate an effective management strategy. We propose to use molecular methods to track the source of epidemics in order to develop appropriately-directed management strategies. In addition to this focus on Pythium monitoring within the greenhouse, planned research will provide a better understanding of biological and cultural factors that affect pathogenicity of root rot, bulb rot, and vascular wilt pathogens and the development of the diseases they cause. This information will be used to improve existing disease management technologies and strategies and enable their incorporation into integrated greenhouse pest management systems.