Dr. Gary Chastagner
Research Highlight
Dr. Gary Chastagner dissusses sudden oak death with Christmas tree Grower
Christmas Tree Research
Nationally, about one third of all of the Christmas trees produced each year come from the Pacific Northwest. The primary goal of the WSU Puyallup Christmas tree program is to provide growers and retailers with research-based information that creates a high-quality Christmas tree product for consumers. To this end, the program covers two principal areas: disease and pest management and the postharvest quality of cut Christmas trees. Current disease and pest management research is focused on the development and management of Annosus root rot, the development of effective ways to reduce populations of insects on trees that restrict export markets, and the identification of sources of trees with resistance to common diseases and insect pests such as Phytophthora root rot, current season needle necrosis, Grovesiellia canker, spider mites, and twig aphids. The current focus of the postharvest research program is the identification of sources of different types of true firs that have superior needle retention. A detached branch test has been developed and is being used to study the effect of harvest date on needle retention and identify genetically superior sources of trees. This research is being done in cooperation with scientists and growers in eight states and four foreign countries and trees that have been identified with superior needle retention are being propagated at a number of nurseries.
Sudden Oak Death Research and Education
Phytophthora ramorum is the recently identified exotic pathogen that causes sudden oak death (SOD) and Ramorum leaf blight and/or shoot dieback on over 100 host plants. This pathogen has killed tens of thousands of trees in California and the PNW is considered to be a high-risk area because of its favorable climate and the abundance of susceptible hosts that occur here.
Spread of P. ramorum outside of known infested areas in California and Southwestern Oregon has largely been associated with the movement of infected plants from ornamental nurseries. For example, WSDA surveys have detected this pathogen at 33 nurseries in Washington (all of the infected plants at these nurseries were destroyed). If P. ramorum becomes established in Washington, federal and international restrictions on the movement of known host material will have widespread economic impacts.
In 2002, a research program was initiated to address this emerging problem. The focus of the research is to determine the susceptibility of conifers to this pathogen and develop effective disease management programs for growers. Research is also being done at a naturally infested field site in California to study the spread of this pathogen from an infected mixed bay laurel/tan oak/coast redwood forest into a Christmas tree plantation. This research will provide regulatory agencies and growers with information relating to the potential risk of moving this pathogen from one area to another on Christmas trees.
In 2004, laboratory space was approved by APHIS to allow for work with this regulated pathogen at WSU Puyallup and construction of an APHIS-approved quarter million dollar biocontainment laboratory at WSU Puyallup was completed during early 2006. With the exception of the WSDA Plant Pathology Laboratory, the WSU Puyallup labs are the only facilities in the state that are currently approved to work with this pathogen. The new biocontainment lab will eliminate the need to travel to Oregon State University to conduct inoculation studies and greatly increase the capacity of WSU to address critical research questions relating to the establishment, spread and management of this pathogen. A new molecular laboratory is currently being developed at WSU Puyallup to support the Sudden Oak Death program. This facility will enable researchers to conduct molecular tests relating to the detection, spread, and genetics of P. ramorum.
With funding provided by the USDA Forest Service and the National Plant Diagnostic Network, WSU Extension has also developed a P. ramorum education program based at WSU Puyallup. The WSU P. ramorum education program is focusing primarily on developing, coordinating, and presenting first detector workshops and research seminars relating to P. ramorum throughout Washington, as well as developing educational material to distribute throughout the state. The goal of first detector workshops is to train nursery and landscape professionals, arborists, natural resource professionals, county extension agents, and Master Gardeners to recognize symptoms potentially caused by P. ramorum in the urban and natural landscape and how to submit samples. Early detection is the key to reducing the risk of widespread outbreaks in Washington and to protecting Washington’s nursery, landscape, and forest industries from the potentially devastating economic effects that a P. ramorum outbreak could have.
Ornamental Bulb Research
Ornamental bulbs represent an important high-value specialty crop in the PNW. Over 90% of the field-grown daffodils, tulips, bulbous iris and Asiatic/Oriental lilies produced in the United States are grown along the coastal areas of Washington, Oregon and northwestern California The estimated value of saleable bulbs and field-grown cut flowers varies from $20 to $30 million. The economic impact of the bulb industry as it relates to tourism is estimated to be about five times greater than the value of the bulbs and cut flowers produced by growers.
The WSU Puyallup ornamental bulb crop disease research program utilizes a combination of field, greenhouse and laboratory studies to better understand how various cultural and disease management practices affect the development of foliar and soil-borne fungal diseases on daffodils, tulips, iris and lilies. Studies include: 1) looking at survival of inoculum from one season to the next; 2) development of information that helps growers minimize the number of fungicide applications needed to control various diseases; and 3) the development of safer more environmentally sound control strategies.
Updated 2006
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