CHARACTERIZING SOIL MICROBIAL COMMUNITIES THAT SUPPRESS POWDERY SCAB OF POTATOES: A COMPREHENSIVE APPROACH TOWARDS DISEASE MANAGEMENT

Our goal is to improve management of potato powdery scab, caused by Spongospora subterraneaf. sp.subterranea(Sss), and potato mop-top virus (PMTV). To do this, we developed an approach that focuses on Sss, the vector of PMTV. Specifically, we plan to gain deeper insight into the biotic and abiotic factors in soil that contribute to powdery scab incidence and severity, and identify agricultural practices that may enhance disease suppression. Our primary hypotheses are that 1) soil microbial communities contribute to disease suppressive activity in soils and 2) disease suppressive activity of soil is affected by soil salinity. To test these hypotheses, we proposed the following objectives:Objective 1. Characterize the specific soil microbial taxa linked to the suppression of powdery scab and identify indicator species associated with powdery scab suppression.Objective 2. Identify the soil physical and chemical properties that correlate with shifts in microbial communities associated with disease suppression and examine if salinity affects the soil microbial community and powdery scab incidence or severity.