Its the time of year when many potato growers (organic and conventional) are preparing to purchase seed potatoes for the upcoming season. Dickeya dianthicola was detected in ‘Dark Red Norland’ and ‘Kennebec’ seed being sold in retail establishments and in ‘Silverton’ in a commercial seed lot in NJ in 2017. Importantly, all growers are encouraged to follow best management practices for buying seed and best management practices for Dickeya in field production. North American Seed Health Certification records and Dickeya test results should be requested prior to purchasing any seed.  If you suspect Dickeya dianthicola in potato seed during purchasing, cutting, or planting please contact your county Extension agent or Extension Specialist. All suspect potato samples should be PCR tested to confirm the presence of Dickeya or Pectobacterium.

This past fall The University of Maine held a Dickeya and Pectobacterium Summit which was attended by over 150 people from all over the world. A nice summary of the meeting by Dr. Angela Madeiras can be found in the January 11, 2018 UMASS Vegetable Notes Newsletter here.

 The best method for keeping your potato operation Dickeya-free is to adopt your own 0% Dickeya-tolerance policy.

Using PCR test results and North American Certified Seed Potato Health Certificates to track Lot no., Dickeya dianthicola was reported in 22 states (ME, DE, FL, MD, MA, MN, NJ, NY, NC, PA, RI, VA, WV, WI, OH, IN, MO, MI, TX, ND, ID, and NM) on at least eleven potato varieties in 2016. Some of these varieties included: ‘Reba’, ‘Superior’, ‘Vivaldi’, ‘Norwis’, ‘Snowden’, ‘Yukon Gold’, ‘Beacon Chipper’, ‘Kennebec’, and ‘Atlantic’.  Known sources of infested seed found in potato fields on the East Coast have originated from WI, at least two suppliers in New Brunswick, Canada, and a number of seed suppliers in Maine this past growing season. To better understand the scope and breadth of the pathogen affecting potato production on the East Coast and elsewhere, information on known varieties and lot numbers that tested positive for Dickeya this past summer have been collected. Information on suspect varieties and lot numbers based on FL tests results from this past winter have also been collected. This information is now widely available. Of importance to all NJ potato growers, is that there have been NO CHANGES in the current policy or Blackleg tolerance levels for mitigating Dickeya dianthicola in seed production. All growers are encouraged to follow best management practices for buying seed and best management practices for Dickeya in field production. If you suspect Dickeya dianthicola in potato seed during cutting or planting please contact your county Extension agent or Extension Specialist. All suspect potato samples should be PCR tested to confirm the presence of Dickeya dianthicola.

 The best method for keeping your potato operation Dickeya-free is to adopt your own 0% Dickeya-tolerance policy.