The Role of
University/USDA Research
in Developing Disease
Management Programs
Tim Brenneman
UGA Dept. of Plant Pathology
Why does UGA even care about
peanuts?
We are mandated to care
about peanuts
Morrill Act of 1862; Land-grant Colleges founded
to teach “agriculture and mechanical arts”
Hatch Act of 1887; Established State Experiment
Stations to “conduct original research . . .
bearing directly upon the agricultural industry”
Smith-Lever Act of 1914; Established the
Cooperative Extension Service for farmer
training, adult education, etc.
CSREES (1994) and NIFA (2009)
Have you ever seen a Cadillac?
This is a Cadillac!
Industry
Research
County-based Extension
Teaching
Fungicides – an essential input
in the humid SE USA
Fungicides aren’t formulated for
the challenges of peanut diseases!
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Leaf spot
Limb rot
White mold
Pod Rot
CBR
Fungicides must get down to the lower
stems, pegs, etc. for white mold control
Underground phase occurs with drier conditions and
presents a difficult target for fungicides.
Irrigation timing for control of
soilborne and foliar diseases
Peanut Leaves Folded at Night
Night Spraying –
Spraying
Gives Night
results with
serious white mold
Night vs. day sprays of the same fungicide
Azoxystrobin
Azoxystrobin
night spray
daylight spray
Both plots received Abound (18.3 fl oz/A) applied at 60 and 90 DAP with the
same equipment (20 GPA)
UGA strives to find the best
uses of commercial products
- Partner with industry
- Thousands of small plots for efficacy evaluations
of experimental and labeled products (bringing
the best tools to Georgia growers)
- What is the best way for our growers to use
these products?
- Source of non-biased data
“What does Tifton say about it?”
Proposed New College of Ag Slogan
"At UGA, we don't make a lot of the products
you buy. We make a lot of the products
you buy (work) better." (Apologies to BASF!)
Many Aspects of University
Research in Plant Pathology
• Fungicide utilization, resistance
management, etc
• Identifying mechanisms and screening for
disease resistance
• Disease forecasting and modeling
• Effects of cultural practices on disease
• Basic biology and epidemiology
• Meeting new challenges (ex. TSWV)
Nearly the End of an Industry!
Losses to Tomato Spotted Wilt in Peanut in
Georgia 1990-2011
0.25%
Jim Todd, Steve “Bug” Brown, John Baldwin, Scott Tubbs, Nathan Smith,
Amanda Smith, John Beasley, Simmy McKeown, Dan Gorbet, Bill Branch, Austin
Hagan, Corley Holbrook, Kim Moore, Peggy Ozias-Akins, Ron Weeks, Carroll
Johnson, Sheran Thompson, Lenny Wells, Tim Brenneman, Audrey Luke Morgan,
Roger Meadows, Mike Deom, Hanu Pappu, Mike Heath, Boyd Padgett, Stanley
Fletcher, Bob Kemerait, Steve Mullis, Eric Prostko, Greg McDonald, Diane
Rowland, Billy Mills, Babu Srinivasan, Fred Shokes,
John Paulk, John Sherwood, June White, Jim Demski, Alex Csinos,
Russell Nuti, Bikash Mandal, Barry Tillman, Natalia Martinez, Roy
Pittman, Claudia Nischwitz, Joel Paz, Rabiu Olatinwo, Gerrit
Hoogenboom, Wilson Faircloth, Roy Pitman, et al, et al, et al…..
S.W.E.A.T.
“Spotted Wilt Eradication Action Team”
The 10 Commandments have
been re-written!
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Weed control
Tillage
Row spacing
Planting Dates
Insect management
Seeding rates
Cultivars & breeding
programs
“These are your cultivars 20??”
(conventional and molecular methods – GMO’s?)
Nematode Resistance – near
immunity and a marker to track it!
With current prices, have we
done too good a job?
In light of world population, energy issues,
water availability, land use issues,
emerging pest resistance problems, etc.,
the real problems still lie ahead.
We will need every available technology we
can think of to meet the needs of our
rapidly growing world!
Improved Production Efficiency
Keeps Peanuts Profitable