Inglis, D.

Debra Inglis

Impact of fungal root endophytes on Verticillium wilt using cucurbits as model hosts

V. dahliae (Vd) is a soilborne fungus that infects a broad range of economically important plants. Infection causes chlorosis and necrosis and yield loss due to invasion and colonization of vascular tissues. The pathogen’s wide host range makes crop rotation challenging for disease reduction. Soil fumigation is economically and environmentally costly and must be done […]

Effects of High Tunnels and Biodegradable Mulch Use on Fruit Quality and Yield in High-value Crops

High tunnels enhance and extend crop production by increasing air temperature and protecting the crop from rainfall. In high tunnel production systems, weeds are often controlled with plastic mulch. There is a desire to reduce non-recyclable waste by using biodegradable mulches (BDMs) that completely biodegrade in situ without detrimentally affecting yield, fruit quality, or the […]

Vegetable grafting for Verticillium dahliae resistance

Tomato, eggplant, and watermelon can be significantly impacted by Verticillium wilt, a soil-borne disease common throughout Washington. Verticillium microsclerotia are known to persist in soil for over 13 years. Symptoms impact plants later in development after most production costs have been incurred, resulting in a 25-100% crop loss in some years even when ground has […]

Forecasting Late Blight for Northwestern Washington Organic Potato Production

This study focused on adapting a disease forecasting system called WISDOM for use in managing late blight in organic specialty potato production systems of western Washington. Although disease forecasting models in crop production are generally known to reduce unnecessary fungicide sprays and fungicide application costs, none have been developed with late blight and organic potato […]

Evaluating vegetable varieties for organic systems

Farmers in Washington are looking to diversify crops to meet demand for organic, local and direct market production. Two crops that can meet these needs are icebox watermelons and winter-grown greens. Icebox watermelons tend to be earlier maturing than picnic watermelon varieties, and thus offer farmers throughout Washington a means of producing high quality watermelons […]

Organic Seed Treatments

The new rules and standards of the USDA National Organic Program have increased the demand for organically produced seed, but have also raised concerns about losses due to both seedborne and soilborne pathogens because of the limited number of options available for organic seed treatment. This is compounded by a lack of unbiased scientific data […]

Organic Transition Rotations for Northwestern Washington

Two three-year rotations are being investigated for suitability for organic transition in northwestern Washington. Cover crop growth was greater and resulted in better weed suppression during 2004-05 than in 2003-04. Common chickweed was the major winter weed species, accounting for 90% of the total weed biomass during the first winter and 75% during the second. […]