b'Canadian PotatoPest/Disease OutlookWhats hot, whats not for 2023 when it comes to potato pests and diseases from coast to coast.BY: TREVOR BACQUEPOTATO FARMERS FROM coast to coast have a lot to contend with between diseases and pests. Certain regions are hit harder than others and where you farm will shape how you approach 2023 regarding both issues. With spring planting right around the corner, Spud Smart rounded up voices of the top scientists from across the country to let you know when to fret about it and when to forget about it.New BrunswickMonitor crops for Potato Virus Y (PVY) and use both oils and insecticide to treat any infeccted plants. Insecticides alone will not stop the spread of the virus via aphid vectors, says Khalil Al-Mughrabi, a pathologist at the Potato Development Centre in Wicklow, N.B. Similar, he notes that Potato Early Dying (PED)which is becoming more frequent in New Brunswick and all across Canadarequires multi-pronged management of healthyPotato plants infected with potato early dying, which is becoming seed and soil treatments with both a fungicide and nematicide.more frequent across Canada and requires multi-pronged Currently, a national research program is about to conclude amanagement of healthy seed and soil treatments with both a fungicide and nematicide to reduce incidence of it.PHOTO: DMYTRO YEVTUSHENKOPED multi-year study of the various efficacy levels of products on PED. A final report will be released no later than the fall. reproduce at warmer temperatures which may be one reason Depending how winter played out in your particular fields willthey are becoming more common, says Al-Mughrabi.determine the relative level of inoculum in the soil. Similarly, early blight has made inroads due to climate change, The province hasnt recorded an official case late blight sinceas well, says Al-Mughrabi. Rapid shifts between hot and wet 2017. This is all because of low inoculum, unfavourable weatherweather stress the foliage, causing susceptibility to increase. Its conditions for disease development and best managementsomething Al-Mughrabi is hearing more of across all Canadian practices that are being adhered to closely. Even though Quebecgrowing regions.and Ontario had late blight in 2022, it didnt make its way to NewFor pests, he notes that Colorado potato beetle (CPB) are still a Brunswick. major concern in Canada and New Brunswick. Due to increasing A nationally co-ordinated late blight project between Britishinsecticide resistance, Al-Mughrabi recommends farmers switch Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Islandbetween various modes of action. Regionally, the Maritimes, continues to focus on tracking the distribution of late blightand New Brunswick especially, have been rocked by aphids, pathogens. specifically in July and August 2022, with numbers doubling the A continued understanding of the prevalence andyear prior. Speculation is that climate change played a major role characteristics of pathogen strains will be critical for successfulin the shift, explains Al-Mughrabi.disease management, he says. Excessive windstorms might have carried the aphids from The good news is that US-23, the most common strain of latethe States, he says. Exceptionally warm weather might have blight, is still controlled by current fungicide groups, althoughaffected the lifecycle of the green peach aphid and increased its Ridomil has proven ineffective in certain strains. Something elsepopulation in potato fields.to keep an eye on is late blight in the face of climate change. Just like PVY, oils and insecticide in tandem are the official Some of the newer strains have adapted to infect andrecommendation.12SPUDSMART.COM Spring 2023'