and/or pest resistance to protect them, such potatoes would be less apt to deliver their health-promoting payloads to consumers worldwide. That’s why Brown and colleagues have developed germplasm lines like PA99N82-4, a Russet that resists Columbia root-knot nematode. These wormlike parasites cause unacceptable tuber defects, and fumigants are required to produce potatoes where the nematodes exist. Each growing region has its own
unique combination of pest and pathogen problems or other peculiarities. Thankfully, ARS’s potato research locations are strategically located to address them, typically in collaboration with state universities and affected industries. The result is an interconnected network that not only benefits the U.S. potato industry, but other nations as well. That’s especially important given today’s increasing global commerce and the unique challenges and opportunities it presents. PG
Read more about this and other ARS
potato projects in the May/June 2010 issue of Agricultural Research magazine, by visiting PotatoGrower.com and clicking on “Extras.”
www.potatogrower.com 25
