Location: Crop Production and Protection
Project Number: 0500-00102-001-025-S
Project Type: Non-Assistance Cooperative Agreement
Start Date: Jun 7, 2021
End Date: Jun 6, 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:
The Michigan State University (MSU) lab will conduct small plot experiments as outlined under Objectives 1 (To establish the association between inoculum intensity, disease development and weather in small plot trials) Experiments will be established at the MSU Plant Pathology Research Farm, near East Lansing, MI, and at a cooperator location near Decatur, MI. The cooperator-PI will supervise a graduate student 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 graduate student and postdoc will also complete the validation of a qPCR assay developed for the tar spot pathogen Phyllachora maydis and will collaborate to have the assay validated across states. The cooperator-PI will also communicate regularly with other NPTMI team members.
