ENHANCING REGIONAL ADOPTION OF ANAEROBIC SOIL DISINFESTATION FOR SOILBORNE DISEASE MANAGEMENT IN HIGH TUNNEL VEGETABLE PRODUCTION SYSTEMS

Production of vegetable crops in protected culture will continue to grow in the North Central, Northeastern, and Southern U.S. We are leveraging our experience adapting ASD for use in OH, PA, and FL to transfer a new soilborne disease management strategy to growers in these regions. We will use a systems approach to disseminate soilborne disease and nutrient management strategies for high value vegetable HT production. We will raise awareness of soilborne diseases, promote grower adoption of diagnostic services and improve fertility recommendations for growers adopting ASD. We will introduce, evaluate and disseminate ASD to growers in three regions through on-farm trials. Lastly, we will develop effective programs to disseminate this technology to growers to encourage widespread adoption. The objectives of this project are to:i) Raise awareness of soilborne disease risks in HTs through targeted surveys and deployment of an optimized soilborne pathogen diagnostic assay (Extension)ii) Develop soil fertility recommendations following ASD treatments in HT vegetable production (Research)iii) Evaluate and disseminate ASD technology through on-farm trials in three regions (Extension)iv) Educate growers on soilborne diseases in protected culture vegetable production and promote adoption of ASD for soilborne disease management in three regions (Extension)