Location: Crop Production and Protection
Project Number: 0500-00102-001-006-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Jun 5, 2020
End Date: Jun 4, 2024
Objective:
Develop predictive modeling tools for Northern corn leaf blight (NCLB) and gray leaf spot (GLS). The first objective is to establish the association between inoculum intensity, disease development and weather in small plot trials for gray leaf spot and northern corn leaf blight of corn. The second objective is to establish the association between initial inoculum, disease development and weather in commercial corn fields for gray leaf spot and northern corn leaf blight.
Approach:
Objective 1 will be established at the Arlington Agricultural Research Station in Arlington WI and the Lancaster Agricultural Research Station, near Lancaster WI. For objective 2, Consultation with UW-Extension Educators will be made to select, sample and assess 25 commercial corn fields across Wisconsin. The PI will supervise a post-doctoral research associate assigned to the project to collect, ship and/or process corn residue and aerosol samples, monitor gray leaf sport and northern corn leaf blight development, and monitor growing conditions following the protocols detailed in the proposal. The research associate will also quantify pathogen inoculum in terms of spore density in sample vials collected from spore traps placed within the small plot trials located in Wisconsin, Kentucky, and Ohio using Q-PCR. The Q-PCR protocols will be developed by the post-doctoral associate assigned to this project.
