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Funded Project |
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Funding Program:
Regional IPM Competitive Grants - Northeastern |
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Project Title:
Infection Biology of Key Cranberry Fruit Rot Pathogens |
Project Directors (PDs):
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Lead State: MA Lead Organization: University of Massachusetts |
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Cooperating State(s):
New Jersey, Washington, Wisconsin |
| Research Funding: $150,000 |
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Start Date: May-01-2002 End Date: Apr-30-2004 |
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Pests Involved: fruit rot fungus, fungi |
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Site/Commodity: cranberry, cranberries |
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Area of Emphasis: storage |
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Summary:
Cranberry fruit rot (CFR) is a potentially destructive disease complex in the field before harvest and in storage after harvest. Current management strategies usually provide satisfactory control. However, there exists significant opportunity to reduce grower reliance on fungicide usage. Without fungicides CFR could cause crop losses in excess of 50% within three years. Disease potential is greatest in the Northeast, although other cranberry growing areas are also vulnerable. Wisconsin, Washington and Oregon tend to have episodic outbreaks that occur when weather conditions favor disease. For example, in 1998 El Niño conditions led to high levels of CFR in Wisconsin. Little is known about the epidemiology of key fungi in the CFR complex. This lack of knowledge is due in part to the latent nature of infections until berries ripen and/or are harvested. The perennial nature of the crop, the fact that commercial beds can be in production for several decades, the potential for inoculum buildup, and the evolution of cranberry with North American fungi makes this pathosystem both unique and complex. There are at least 15 different species of fungi that cause CFR and the frequencies of each species vary among sites and years. The factors that determine which species will predominate in a particular location or season are unknown. In addition, it has not been possible to detect fruit rotting fungi at or near the time of infection using current isolation methods. These limitations have severely hampered quantitative studies of this disease. Recently a very sensitive technique, reverse dot blot hybridization (RDBH), was developed specifically for CFR fungi. The technique is based on the detection of species-specific DNA sequences amplified using the polymerase chain reaction. RDBH can be used to detect pathogens during the early stages of fruit infection, two to three weeks earlier than by conventional methods. The development of this technology represents a substantial breakthrough, and several studies not previously possible are now approachable.
We propose an epidemiological study of CFR to investigate one overarching hypothesis: cranberry fruit exhibit a distinct period of susceptibility during early development. We propose that infections occurring during this period have a high probability of eventually rotting fruit, whereas infections occurring later in the season have a lower probability of rotting fruit. If this is correct, then disease control could be achieved by applying fungicides during these critical periods, and applications later in the season could be reduced or eliminated. Specific objectives are to determine the important sources of inoculum, to characterize infection structures and latent forms for the fruit rot fungi, and to determine the timing of infection by the fruit rot fungi. In the Northeast, where growers currently apply fungicides three to six times per season, we envision a spray program of one to three applications to achieve the same level of control. This reduction in the number of fungicide applications will save costs for growers during current difficult economic times for the cranberry industry. It will also minimize pesticide contamination of the environmentally sensitive wetlands in which cranberries are cultivated and thereby protect surface water quality. Moreover, if we identify a distinct source of primary inoculum (e.g., leftover fruit from the previous year), we believe that it will be possible to manage beds to reduce this primary inoculum. Objectives: 1. Determine the important sources of inoculum of the fruit rot fungi. 2. Characterize infection structures and latent forms for the fruit rot fungi. 3. Determine the timing of infection by the fruit rot fungi. USDA CRIS data |
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