Issue link: http://read.uberflip.com/i/602265
www.potatogrower.com 39 of True Plant Health DISCOVER BENEFITS the EMPLOY IS A NATURALLY DERIVED BIOCHEMICAL PLANT ACTIVATOR THAT ENHANCES CROP GROWTH, QUALITY & YIELD EMPLOY PROVIDES UP TO 28 DAYS OF Disease suppression Protection from Environmental stress Nematode suppression PROVIDING HEALTHIER POTATOES FOR More consistent quality Increased plant stamina & vigor Extended health of crop canopy Reduced environmental stress effects on quality Reduced incidence & severity of disease Improved tuber uniformity and size EPA registered plant health promoter Employ ® is a registered trademark of Plant Health Care, Inc. For more information visit www.sym-agro.com 155727SymAgr12h.indd 1 9/30/15 12:24 PM Washington, Idaho and Oregon. The Potato Research Consortium, comprised of potato industry groups from the three states, will also participate. "It's a regional problem, and we need to look at the problem comprehensively," Snyder said. "This is vitally important to maintain the potato industry in this region." HOW'D THEY GET HERE? Host psyllids have several known genetic variations. Some psyllids survive Northwest winters, Snyder said, but others ride on winds and are blown into fields in the region seasonally. His lab is tasked with figuring out if the blown-in variety, the local version or both carry the zebra chip bacterium. "If it's the blow-in version, there's not much we can do about that," he said. "We can't control the wind. "But we can monitor weather patterns to see where they're coming from," he said. "If the pathogen is carried by the winterized psyllids, then we have to find where they're living in the cold weather… and how they're surviving the winter." While it's a five-year grant, the scientists hope to have solid answers and working, mobile-friendly, predictive maps in three years, Snyder said. RECENT ARRIVAL Zebra chip symptoms first showed up in Washington in 2011, after crippling the potato crop in states like Texas over a decade ago. Already, zebra chip has cost the regional potato industry millions of dollars in lost crops and increased management costs. Snyder hopes the work enabled by this grant will allow the regional potato industry to survive the zebra chip outbreak. PG WHAT'S FOR LUNCH? Potato psyllids feed on bittersweet nightshade, a weed that keeps them alive through Northwest winters.