Department of Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe …...losses, and they let it be known that they...

Department of Plant Pathologyand Plant-Microbe Biology

George S. Abawi, APS vice-President George W. Hudler, Cornell Weiss Fellow

2012 Alumni Newsletter Volume 53

Alumni Newsletter 2012, Vol. 53 Department of Plant Pathology & Plant-Microbe Biology Cornell University —Page 1

Table of ContentsPage 1 Thanks

2 LetterfromtheChair

4 FacultyNews

8 GraduateStudents

10 Congratulations

15 DepartmentDoings

18 Facilities

22 IntheNews

27 DiseaseUpdates

30 Necrology

30 Miscellany

30 Visitors

31 NewsforFutureNewsletters

32 OpportunitiesforGiving

Thelayoutworkforthisyear’sissueoftheAlumniNewsletterwas done byDawn

Dailey O’Brien. Thanks to Dawn also forpursuing and organizing contributions fromalumni,facultyandstaff.

Thanks to JackieArmstrong for compilinginformationregardingpastandpresentgraduatestudents.ThankstoCarolFisher,SandraJensenandRachelMcCarthy for proofreading.AndthankyoutoKentLoefflerforthefrontcover.

Send feedback and suggestions for [email protected]

TheAlumniNewsletter ispublishedannuallybythe

DepartmentofPlantPathologyandPlant-MicrobeBiology

CollegeofAgricultureandLifeSciencesCornellUniversity,334PlantScience

Ithaca,NY14853

mailto:plantpathcornell.edu


Greetings Winter 2012

from the ChairWilliam Fry

Chair, Department of Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology

DearColleagues,

Formanyof theolderdepartmentalumni,my letter isabitofdéjàvu“alloveragain”.IwaschairoftheIthaca

Department from1981 through1995. (I’mnot yet retired,becauseIwasonly15whenIbecamechairbackin1981.)Since June 2011, I have once again become chair of thedepartment.IhavetothankGeorgeHudlerforallhe’sdoneaschairandtothankWayneWilcoxwhoremainsasassociatechair.Theybothguidedus through the initialstagesof theGeneva-Ithacamerger.It’sabitintimidatingtofollowGeorgeHudleraschairofthemergeddepartment,butit’salsoreallyfun.Thanksverymuch,George.

Iknowalmosteveryalumna/uswhoisreadingthisletterandso this isareallypersonalcommunicationforme.I’mdelighted tohavea reasonfor renewing theseassociations/friendships.ForthoseofyouwhofollowCornellUniversityhappenings, you’ll know that I’m also still Dean of theUniversityFaculty.However,thedualappointmentsendwhenanewDeanoftheUniversityFacultyassumesresponsibilityon1July2012.MyappointmentaschairofPPPMBisthroughJune2014.It’sfuntobeback.

ItiswithmuchenthusiasmandoptimismthatIwritethisopeningletter.Thereisalothappening.Forme,oneofthemajorhappeningsisthatweareinoursecondyearasasingleunitatCornell.IrealizethatsomeofyouregardyouracademichomeasGenevaandsomeofyouregardyouracademichomeasIthaca.However,currentmembersareevolvingtoanewreality;ouracademichomeis“Cornell”,andweliveinfourlocationsinNY—Geneva,Ithaca,HudsonValleyandLongIsland.We’rebecomingbetteratusingpolycomtechnologyforcommunication.(However,wehaveawaystogoinlearninghowtouseitmosteffectively.)

Wearealargedepartmentwithabout170members.Thereare typically45–50staff,28 tenure trackfaculty,about40otherfaculty(SeniorResearch/ExtensionAssociates;courtesyandadjunctfacultyemployedbyBTI,USDA-ARS,andotheracademicinstitutions),15–20postdoctoralassociates,28–35graduate students, and 6 local emeriti.Our total budget isabout$13,000,000.Withsuchhumanandfinancialresourceswedoalot.Weteachnearly2000credithoursinmorethan

20coursesonadiverserangeoftopics.Ouraccomplishmentinextension/outreachisat thetopofalldepartmentsinthecollege.Ouraccomplishmentinresearchisalsoexcellent:weareinthetopquartileinthecollegeintermsofpublishingandgrantsmanship(withmorethan$20,000,000inactivegrants).

Ouraccomplishment is recognizedby themanyawardsreceivedbydepartmentmembers(seepp.10).InthisletterIwanttoemphasizetwoawardsthat,“byGeorge”,arereallywonderful.GeorgeAbawiwasrecentlyelectedVicePresidentoftheAmericanPhytopathologicalSociety.Heisnowinthepresidentialsuccession,andwillbepresidentin2013–2014.We’retakingbetsonthethemefortheAPSmeetingin2014.Whataboutsoilhealth?GeorgeHudlerhasbeenrecognizedas one of threeCornell faculty (all colleges) to be namedaWeiss Presidential Fellow this year. Hudler’s course,“MagicalMushrooms,MischievousMolds” is attracting300–500 students each spring semester and it has becomeoneofonlytwocoursestomakethelistof“161thingseveryCornellian should do” (http://cornellsun.com/section/news/content/2009/07/19/big-red-ambition-161-things-every-cornellian-should-do).

Wearealsoadepartment inverysignificant transition.Inadditiontothemerger,manyoftheearly“boomers”arereachingretirementage,andtherearemanyretirementsalreadyinplaceorplanned.Infall2011,RosemaryLoria“retired”fromCornelltoassumethedepartmentheadpositioninthedepartmentofPlantPathologyat theUniversityofFlorida.WemissRoseand thankher forhermanycontributions toCornell.Wewishhertheverybest.IneedtoremindRose,thateventhoughshe’sdepartmentheadatGainesville,she’sstill“emerita”atCornell.HarveyHochretiredinearly2012.HarveyretainsresearchactivityinGeneva,buthespendsmostofhistimeinwarmerclimes.IbelievethatHarvey’semeritusactivitieswillbemoretraditional.Wewishhimthebestandlookforwardtohisvisitsbacktohislab.

Becauseofbudget constraints, our college is scheduledtobecomesmallerbyabout10%in thenextseveralyears.Therefore,weexpectthatwewillnotbeabletoreplaceallretiring faculty. PPPMBatCornell is already significantly

from the Chair continued


smallernowthanitwas15yearsago.Oneindicationisthat15 years ago,we had 36 tenure track faculty.We expectanadditional10fullorphasedretirementsinthenext2–4years,soweareinthemidstofplanninghowwewilladjusttothosedepartures.PartofthatplanningprocesshasbeentodevelopanewstrategicplanfortheDepartment.Werealizethatastrategicplanisalivingandevolvingdocument,soweshallcontinuetoworkonitastimeprogresses.SeetherightcolumnofthispageforthestatementsofourvisionandmissionpresentedinourMay2011strategicplan.

Ourtransitionprovidesmanychallengesandopportunities.Onewonderful opportunity is to renew the facultywithnewhires.Thisyearwehaveasearchintheareaof“plantimmunity”.Nextyearwearerequestingasearchintheareaofsoil-bornemicrobes/pathogenswithextensionresponsibilityinvegetablepathology.Oneofthechallengesforusisgraduatestudent funding. For the older alumni, you’ll probablyrememberbeingsupportedonastatelineGraduateResearchAssistantship.Thosenolongerexist,butwedohaveteaching,andextension/outreachassistantshipsthatprovideninemonthsof support.Thedifficulty is thatour total internalgraduatestudentsupportislessthan20%ofwhatitwas30yearsgo.Whilewetrytoputgraduatestudentsonresearchgrants,that’sarealchallengegivenourhightuition.I’llbeworkinghardtoobtainmoregraduatestudentsupportfromthecollege.ButinadditionI’llalsobesolicitingphilanthropyforthispurpose.Asareminder,our“excellencefund”isalwaysopenfordonationsandhasalreadybeena significant sourceofhelp for somegraduatestudents.

Welovetohearfromyou.Pleasedowrite([email protected])andletusknowhowandwhatyou’redoing.It’sfuntosee you at variousmeetings throughout theworld.We aretremendouslyproudofyouraccomplishment.

Best,Bill

Our Vision:“Cornell PPPMBwill: generate newknowledge aboutpathogenesis and plant-associatedmicrobes; deviseinnovativesustainablemethodstosuppressplantdisease;educate undergraduate students, graduate students, andstakeholders (including policymakers, agriculturalproducers, and the general citizenry) for the benefit ofhumankind.”

Our Mission is to: Educateundergraduateandgraduatestudentsinthe

scienceandpracticeofourdiscipline.

Prepareindividualsforleadershiprolesinacademia,in agribusinesses, in biotechnology, in non-profitorganizations, in governmental research, outreach, andregulation,etc.

Conductresearchthatwilladvanceourunderstandingofinteractionsbetweenplantsandmicrobesandthecauseandmanagement of plant disease.This researchwillinclude:

◦ Fundamentalbiologyofplant-microbeinteractionsatthecommunity/populationleveltobetterunderstandimpactsonyieldandqualityofagriculturalproducts,andimpactsinurban/suburbanandnaturalecosystems

◦ Developmentandimplementationofeffectiveandenvironmentallysounddiseasemanagementstrategiesbasedupontheunderstandingofpathogenbiologyandcropproductionpractices

◦ Fundamentalcellular,molecular,andevolutionarybiology of pathogens and other plant-associatedmicrobes,theirpathogenesis,theirimpactsonhuman,animal,andplanthealth,andtheirrolesinenvironmentalprocesses

Transferresearch-basedinformationandtechnologytostakeholdersinthefields,landscapes,laboratories,andclassroomsofNewYorkState,thenation,andtheworld.

from the Chair continued

mailto:wef1%40cornell.edu?subject=

mailto:wef1%40cornell.edu?subject=


NewsFaculty

Beer Research Program Transitions from Blighted Apples to Rotten Onions

Aftermorethan40yearsresearchingaspectsoffireblightrangingfromcontroltogenomics,theBeerprogramhas

transitioned to studies of bacterial pathogensofNewYorkmuck-grown onions.The program became involvedwithbacterial diseasesof onion for several reasons.Firstly, JimLorbeerrequestedassistanceearlyin2007incharacterizingwhatseemedtobeanewbacterialdiseasethatwasaffectingNewYorkonionsfollowingstorage.Theproblemturnedouttobecenterrot,causedbythebacteriumPantoea ananatis. Later,wefoundsymptomsofcenterrotinonionsgrowinginseveralNewYorkonion-growing areas.More recently,wefoundandcharacterizedanothernewdiseaseforNewYorkinonions,Enterobacterbulbdecay,causedbyEnterobacter cloacae.ThesetwobacterianowjoinBurkholderia cepaciatocomprisewhatappearstobetheimportantbacteriaresponsibleforthe10to40%thattheState’soniongrowersreportlosingtobacteriaintypicalyears.

Obviously,growerswere/arenothappywithsuchseverelosses,andtheyletitbeknownthattheyneededmoreworkonbacterialdiseaseproblems.Thus, theBeerprogramhascontinuedtodelveintorottenonions.Basedontheanalysisofhundredsofcullonionsreceivedfromgrowersfollowingstorage in2011, severalotherpathogensare in theprocessofbeingdocumentedandeffortsareintheworkstodevelopcontrols(non-existentatpresent!)basedonattackinginoculumatitssourceandstrategiestoenhancetheresistanceofonionsthroughalteredculturalpracticesandsprays.

ProgrampersonnelincludeJeanBonasera,careerResearchSupportSpecialistandmainstayoftheprogram.Jeanhasmadea seamless transition toonions.Shenowappliesher crackorganizationalskillsandkeenresearchintellectandexpertisetothebacterialproblemsofonions.Shealsohasdevelopedaneatmolecular-basedproceduretoidentifybacteriaisolatedfromonionsbasedonthesequenceofaconservedgene.

About the time thatwe took up the onion problem inearnest, fortunately,Dr.AliZaid, fromGiza,Egypt, joinedtheprogramasaVisitingScholar.Alihasprovidedcriticalplant pathological expertise in developing a semi-selectivemediumfor the isolationofonionpathogenicbacteria,andthe development of several pathogenicity assays for onionpathogens.He also is seeking genes ofPantoea ananatisimportanttotheirvirulenceinonions.

ThemolecularaspectsoftheprogramhavebeenenhancedbyDr.JoAnnAsselin,whorejoinedtheBeerprogramaftera2-yearassignmentatTheOhioStateUniversityinColumbus,workingwithDrs.DavidMackeyandDavidCoplin.JoAnnis investigating possible resistance genes of onionwhoseexpressionmightbeenhancedtoincreaseresistancetobacteriathatinfectonions.Also,togetherwithJean,JoAnncompilesthedataonthehundredsofcullonionsthattheprogramhasdealtwithinthepastyear.JoAnnalsoisintherunningfortherecordasthephotographerofthemostrottenonionsintheworld.

Dr.KubilayBastasjoinedtheBeerprogramasaVisitingScholar forfivemonthsduring the summerof 2011.KubewasonleavefromhisprofessorialdutiesatSelcutUniversityinKonyaincentralTurkey.Inadditiontohelpingoutwithstudiesofbacterialproblemsononionsinthelabandfield,KubespentseveraldaysinGenevaassistingHerbAldwincklewithfieldexperimentsrelatedtorootstockblightcausedbyErwinia amylovora.Also,workingtogetherwithJoAnn,KubeinitiatedstudiesonthebasisofvirulencedifferencesamongstrainsofE. amylovora.

SteveBeerisoneofseveralfacultyinthedepartmentwhohas entered into phased retirement.He continues researchandextensionactivity,buthisteachingresponsibilitieshavebeenreduced.HenowservesastheIthacacoordinatorofthegraduatestudentresearchseminarprogram.

Thomas Burr

DusitAthinuwat recently left our labwhere hewas apostdocworkingonPierce’sDiseaseofgrapetoaccept

afacultypositionatThammasatUniversityinThailand.HereceivedhisPh.D.fromKasetsartUniversityinBangkokandhiscurrentaddressis:

DusitAthinuwat,Ph.D.LecturerMajor ofOrganic FarmingMangement, Faculty ofScienceandTechnology,ThammasatUniversityRangsitCenter99PaholyothinRd.,Klongluang,Patumtani12121ThailandTel:(66)25644440-2063Fax:(66)25644485

KamekaLatoya Johnson recently joined our lab as apostdoctoworkonPierce’sdiseaseandongrapevinecrowngall.KamekareceivedherPh.D.in2010fromtheUniversityof


GeorgiainRonWalcott’slaboratoryworkingon“Elucidationofthemolecularhost-pathogeninteractionsthatinfluenceseed-to-seedlingtransmissionofAcidovorax citrulli”.

SupapornKaewnumleftourlabinDecember2010toreturntoThailandwheresheisinterviewingforresearchpositions.Supaporn’sresearchinvolvedthebiologicalcontrolofgrapecrowngall.

Gary Bergstrom

TheBergstromLab,akaFieldCropsPathologyLab,hadanotherbusyyear.WesaidafondfarewellinNovember

toKatieWaxman,oursuperbresearchsupportspecialistofthepast4+years,asshemovedtoCaliforniawithherhusbandAndrewtopursuenewopportunitiesintheGoldenState.Westarted thenewyearbywelcoming JaimeCummings fromMissouriasournewresearchsupportspecialist;JaimeandherhusbandAaronarereturningtotheirrootsinNewYorkState.ContinuinginthelabareresearchassociateMarshallHayes,Ph.D. studentsChristineLayton and JuliaCrane, researchspecialistStanKawamoto(parttime),andseniorundergraduateresearchersHannahBaughmann andLizBurrichter—eachassociatedwith the lab since their freshmanyear.MarshallHayescontinueshisresearchfundedbyNortheastSunGrantondirectedevolutionoffungitoselectstrainswithincreasedcapacityforenzymaticconversionoflignocelluloseforbiofuelproduction,whilealsopursuingnewresearchfrontiersinthelandscape ecology and transmission of field crop diseasesinassociationwith theAFIDD(AnalyticalFrameworksforInfectiousDiseaseDynamics)grouponcampus.CornellsignedacontractwithNovozymesBioAgin2011thatprovidesforpartialsupportofJuliaCrane’sPh.D.studiesonmechanismsof biological control byBacillus amyloliquefaciens againstFusarium graminearum.ChristineLayton’sPh.D.workonswitchgrasssmutiscurrentlysupportedbyagrantfromtheNewYorkFarmViabilityInstitute.GaryandKatiecontinuedtheir collaborative, farm-scale epidemiology studies onFusariumhead blight ofwheatwith experimental sites inIllinois, Kentucky,Michigan,Missouri, Nebraska,NewYork,andVermont.Garycompletedhis serviceasdirectorof theAPSAuxiliaryMeetingsBoard and as vice-chair of

theDiseaseManagementCommitteeof theUSWheat andBarleyScabResearchInitiative.Garywasrecognizedin2011withtheExcellenceinIPMAwardfromtheNewYorkStateIPMProgram,andwasnamedafacultyfellowbyCornell’sAtkinsonCenterforaSustainableFuture.

Alan Collmer

TheCollmerLabcontinuestoworkonthetypeIIIeffectorrepertoireofPseudomonas syringaepv.tomatoDC3000.

In a nutshell,we are trying to understand the rules of themoleculargamethatisplayedbetweenpathogensandplantssothatwecanimprovetheabilityofplantstomoreconsistentlywin thegame.This is a toughchallengebecause thegameinvolvessomanypieces,forexample,the28effectorproteinsthatDC3000injectsintoplantcells.Ahighlightofthisyearwasthe6-monthsabbaticalvisitofProfessorPabloRodriguez-Palenzuela fromCentro deBiotecnología yGenómica dePlantas(CBGP)andUniversidadPolitécnicadeMadrid.Thiswasalsoayearoftriumph,asJayWorley(withEllenCrocker)wonthe7thAnnualCornellPlantSciencesChiliCook-off–MeatEntryAward.Andfinally,formerlabmemberswereverybusyin2011producinganewcropofpotentialfuturestudents:• LisaSchechterandRichardBierman:sonGabrielRoss

BiermanbornonFebruary26• SébastienCunnacandAurélieAngot:sonSamuelCunnac

AngotbornonNovember12• DuckHwanandNamKyungPark:sonHyun-SeoPark

bornonDecember1• AdelaRamosandPeterChoi:sonFranciscoJavierJae-

HunChoibornonDecember3

Kerik Cox

2011wasaproductiveyearfortheCoxLab.Wewelcomeda newgraduate studentZacharyFrederick,whohit the

groundrunningwithasideprojectinvestigatingthebreakdownofwhite pine blister rust immunity in currants inNYandRIthatledtoanoteinPlantDisease.SaraVillanimentoredaWilliamSmith student Juliana Freier and together theyunraveled the story behind theMonilinia shoot blight andbrownfruitepidemicsthatsweptacrossNYandNewEnglandinthelatespringandearlysummer,whichalsoledtoanoteinPlantDisease.Sara alsomentoredSummerScholar andCornellundergraduateKathrynAbbottwhoinvestigatedtheinfluenceoflateseasonapplefungicideapplicationsontheselectionofsite-specificfungicideresistanceintheapplescabfungusVenturia inaequalis.Herprojectwaswellreceivedattheappliedresearchconferencesinthefallandwasrequestedat upcomingwintergrower fruit schools. In regards toourapplescabandbrownrot resistancemonitoringefforts,wehavejustcompletedour5thyearofofferingthesefreeservicestoNYstakeholders.

Icontinuedtoworkwithformerpost-docStacySingerandtogetherwefurtherelucidated thephenomenaofenhancer-blockinginsulatorsintransgenicplantsystems,whichledtoseveralpapersinPlantCellReportsandrelatedjournals.IncollaborationwiththeAldwinckleLab,weregeneratedseveral

Bergstrom lab group enjoys a pizza party on their ‘private patio’ on the roof of the Plant Science Building.


transgeniccitruslinesthatcontainRNAiconstructstargetinggutproteinsinDiaphorina citri,thevectorofcitrusgreening.Finally,theAldwinckleprogramandIhavesecuredspecialtycrop funding to investigate latent fire blight infections innurserystock,andarestartingnewinitiativestoinvestigateantibioticresistanceinpopulationsofthefireblightpathogenErwinia amylovora.

Helene Dillard

Iwouldliketowelcomeanewvisitortomylaboratory.Dr.NanaBitsadzeisaFulbrightScholarfromtheRepublicofGeorgia.ShecompletedherPh.D.attheKanchaveliInstituteofPlantProtectionandhashadvisitingscientistscholarshipsinHolland,Germany,andIsrael.Shewillbeworkinginmylab on biological control ofSclerotinia sclerotiorumwithcombinations ofConiothyrium minitans andBeauveriabassiana.NanaarrivedinOctoberandwillbewithusuntilJuly10,2012.Iwouldalsoliketowelcomeanewgraduatestudenttothelab,SusanScheufele,whowillbeworkingonAlternarialeafspotofcrucifers.Sheisparticularlyinterestedindevelopingeffectivecontrolstrategiesfororganicfarmingsystems. This summer, many handsmade for fun andinvigoratingworkonSclerotinia sclerotiorum, Phytophthora capsici, andAlternariabrassicicola, thanks to Joi Strauss(technician),AlissaCarissimi (temporary technician), andRachelKreis(summerscholarfromIowaStateUniversity).

George Hudler

TheNewYear started outwith a bang forHudler andCompanyasalittleover500studentsshowedupforthe

first dayofMagicalMushrooms,MischievousMolds.CallAuditoriumwasnearly full tooverflowing, inpartbecausethecourse(withanaddeddiscussionsection)nowfulfillsasciencecourserequirementforstudentsinArtsandSciencesand inCALS.Exams became exclusivelymultiple-choiceandhalftheclasshadtogotoanotherauditoriumonexamdaysjusttoenableustohaveoneemptyseatbetweeneachtest-taker.Everynewclassdaybrought itsownchallengesbutDaveKalbandTAsAllisonJack,ChristineLayton,and

AnneJohnsonrose to theoccasionand thesemester ran tocompletion in fine form.On the research front, post-docShawnKenaleycontinuedtomakeprogresstowardansweringpuzzlingquestionsaboutoccurrenceanddistributionoflethalPhytophthora-causedbleeding cankers onEuropeanbeech.Anunusualsite inBrooklyn(actually,a500acrecemeterywithnearly200maturebeechtrees)withallvegetationundermanagement by one individual has proven to be an idealplace to conduct spatial analyses ondisease occurrence aswellastreeringanalysestoidentifypotentiallypredisposingweatherevents.Ourothermainproject,onetodocumentthediversityofMelampsoraspp.onwillowsgrownforbiofuelsfeedstock, continues to surprise uswith newawareness ofthevariabilityinwhatwefirstthoughtwasasinglespecies.Athirdproject,inconjunctionwithMargeDaughtreyandoflessermagnitudebutperhapsequalpracticalimportanceledustomakeafirstrecordofGymnosporangium sabinae (causeofpeartrellisrust)inNewYorkonCallerypear,noless.Callerypear is an extremely reliable tree because of its pleasinggrowthhabits,toleranceofmarginalsites,andfreedomfrominsectsanddiseases.However,discoveryofthisoccasionallyseriousleafdiseasecouldbeagame-changer.SomepersonalaccomplishmentsincludeanadditiontotheKenaleyfamily—ababygirl,Mairenn—andHudler’sreceiptoftheEdgertonCareerTeachingAward;theformerobviouslyexpected(thisyear),thelatteracompleteandmuchappreciatedsurprise.

Greg MartinNew personnel:HernanRoslijoinedtheMartinlabasapostdoctoralassociateinMay.He is from the IIBINTECH Institute,Argentina.Hernan’swillusegenomictoolstoidentifytomatocandidategenesimplicatedinthedefenseresponsethatisinducedbymicrobeassociatedmolecularpatterns(MAMPs).

SarahHindjoinedtheMartinlabinMayasapostdoc.ShehasspentthelastseveralyearsstudyingtheroleofMAPKsignalinginplant-insectinteractionsintomatoattheUniversityofSouthCarolina.ShewillcontinueherworkwithtomatointheMartinLabby investigating the linkbetweenpathogenrecognitionandMAPKsignalingpathways.

PatrickBoyle,apostdocintheMartinLab,wasrecentlyawardedaHumanFrontiersScienceProgram(HFSP)Long-termfellowshipforaresearchprojecttitled“Pathogeneffectorsencodingphotocrosslinkingaminoacids:atoolforhosttargetidentification”.HefollowsinthefootstepsofhisfellowlabmemberJohannesMathieuwhoclaimedthesameprizethepreviousyear.

FanhongMeng joined theMartin lab as a postdoctoralassociate inAugust. She got herPh.D. inPlantPathologyat University ofWisconsin-Madison, studying the coldadaptationandcoolvirulencemechanismsof theRalstonia solanacearumrace3biovar2strains.IntheMartinlab,shewillworkontheinteractionsofSalmonellawithtomato,aswellascharacterizationofanewPseudomonas syringaepv.tomatoresistancegeneinwildtomato.

Left to Right, Kathryn Abbott and Zachary Frederick conducting apple scab research and Sara Villani and Jessica Raes (Suny Geneseo Intern) working on Monilinia shoot blight samples


Lab members who left in 2011 for positions elsewhere:KathyMunkvoldwasselectedastheAmericanSocietyofPlantBiologists(ASPB)PlantSciencePolicyFellow.Herworkwillsupport thePlantScienceResearchSummit,agatheringofrepresentativesfromallaspectsoftheplantsciencecommunitydesigned to identifycritical areas for futureplant research.KathywillbeworkingatASPBheadquarters inRockville,MDbeginninginmid-July.

Jesse Munkvold accepted the position of TraitBioinformatician in theAppliedSystemsBiologygroup atKeygeneInc.,Rockville,MD.Hewillbeworkingonintegratingdiverseomicsdataandapplyingnovelcomputationalmethodsfortraitgeneselection.

RobAbramovitch,aformerPPPMBgraduatestudentintheMartinlabandnowpostdocwithDavidRussellintheCornellVetSchool,hasacceptedapositionasAssistantProfessorintheDepartmentofMicrobiologyandMolecularGeneticsatMichiganStateUniversity.RobwilljoinMSUandofficiallybecomeaSpartaninJanuary2012.

ChangSikOh, formerPPPMBstudentwithSteveBeerand postdocwithGregMartin recently departedBTI tobecomeAssistant Professor,Department ofHorticulturalBiotechnology, atKyungHeeUniversity inKorea.He isbusyjugglingdualroles:asresearcher(fruittreepathology—mechanisms of disease resistance in fruit trees andpathogenesisofpathogensinfruittrees)andfacultymember,teachinga“GeneralPlantPathology”coursethissemester.

Gillian Turgeon

Overthelastfewyears,theTurgeonlabhasworkedwiththe JointGenome Institute (JGI) and itsCommunity

Sequencing Program (http://www.jgi.doe.gov/; http://proposals.jgi-psf.org/)tosequencethegenomesofseveralkeycerealpathogensinthegenusCochliobolus.Cochliobolusisaspecies-richgenusoftaxathathavecauseddevastatinglossestoUS agriculture.The superpathogens,C. heterostrophus (host:corn),C. carbonum(corn),C. victoriae(oats),C. sativus(cereals),andC. miyabeanus(rice),formatightphylogeneticgroup, distinguished by unique pathogenic capability toparticularplants.Genomeresourcesforallof thesespeciesarenowavailable(http://genome.jgi-psf.org/programs/fungi/index.jsf;http://genome.jgi-psf.org/CocheC5_3/CocheC5_3.home.html)undertheauspicesoftheJGIFungalGenomicsProgram.Inaddition, theTurgeonlabworkedwiththeJGIin sequencingof thecausal agentofNorthernLeafBlight,Setosphaeria turcica,whichisaclosehemibiotrophicrelativeofnecrotrophicC. heterostrophus,causalagentofSouthernCornLeafBlight, in order to compare pathogen lifestylerequirementsonthesamehost.

Turgeonisalsopartofateam(http://1000.fungalgenomes.org/home/participants), spearheaded by Joey Spatafora(OregonState), tosequence1000fungalgenomes thatwillprovide‘broadcoverageoftheKingdomFungiandinformallareasoffungalbiology’(http://1000.fungalgenomes.org/home/category/announcements/)

Tom Zitter

TomZitter convened the 26th annualTomatoDiseaseWorkshopfromOctober11–13,2011atthedowntown

HolidayInninIthaca,NY.Itprovidedagreateropportunitytoshowcaseongoingresearchandextensionprogramsrelatingtotomatoes—fromgenomestofarmingoperationsatCornellandinNewYorkState.Atotalof109registrantsandothersparticipated(ninecountriesrepresented),andtheattendancewasswelledbyattendeestotheTomatoBreedersRoundtablemeetingheldthesameweek,aswellastheSolCAPWorkshopheld on campus atMannLibrary.Representing the tomatoindustryinNewYorkwasanexcellentpresentationbyAmyHepworth,ofHepworthFarmsinMilton,NY,nearthebanksoftheHudsonRiver.Shedescribedtheintricaciesofgrowing55acresoftomatoesorganically,andprovidingmanyheirloomtomatoestoWholeFoodsandtheParkSlopeFoodCoopinBrooklyn,NY,aCSAwithover17,000members.ThenextTDWwillbeheldinfall2012inWooster,OH.

HelenGriffithscompletedherappointmentasaResearchAssociate in the Zitter Lab in December 2011. Helenparticipatedinavarietyofprojectsover thepastsixyears,mostlyfocusingonidentifyingpotatocultivarsandbreedinglines with resistance to pink rot and black dot, testingchemicalmethodstoreducethedamaginglevelsofpinkrotinexperimentalandcommercialfields,andevaluatingtheroleofbrassicas(CalienteandNemat)asbiofumigantsinrotationsforpotatoproductionintheregion.Aftermorethan15yearsasaResearchSupportSpecialistintheZitterLab(replacingLouisHsu,anotherlongtermemployeeintheDepartment),JessicaDrennan, left the program to join the programofRobinBellinder inHorticulture. Jessicahonedherskills infieldandlaboperationsbyworkingeachseasononfieldplotestablishmentandchemicalevaluationsfortomato,potatoandcucurbitsgrownforexperimentsconductedatFreeville,NY.

Participants at the 26th annual Tomato Disease Workshop in Ithaca

http://www.jgi.doe.gov/

http://proposals.jgi-psf.org/

http://proposals.jgi-psf.org/

http://genome.jgi-psf.org/programs/fungi/index.jsf

http://genome.jgi-psf.org/programs/fungi/index.jsf

http://genome.jgi-psf.org/CocheC5_3/CocheC5_3.home.html

http://genome.jgi-psf.org/CocheC5_3/CocheC5_3.home.html

http://1000.fungalgenomes.org/home/participants

http://1000.fungalgenomes.org/home/participants

http://1000.fungalgenomes.org/home/category/announcements/

http://1000.fungalgenomes.org/home/category/announcements/


Graduate StudentsNew Graduate Students—Fall 2011Giovanna DaniesResearch Experience:MolecularandhistologicalinteractionbetweenPhytophthora infestansandPhysalis peruviana.Interests:ThegeneticstructureofpopulationsofP. infestans intheUnitedStatesandelucidatingthegeneticbasisforhostspecificityandsensitivitytomefenoxaminpopulationsofP. infestans.Chairperson:Dr.WilliamFry

Zack FrederickResearch Experience:Distributionoffungicideresistanceinspatiallyseparatedtreeswithinanorchard,andhowsamplingschemesreflectthedistribution.Interests:DynamicsoftheG143ApointmutationthatconfersresistancetoQoIfungicidechemistriesinVenturia inaequalis.Chairperson:Dr.KerikCoxErin GalarneauResearch Experience:BiogenesisofachloroplastproteininArabidopsis;populationgeneticsofwildricespecies(Zizania palustrisandZizania aquatica)Interests: Effect of biotic and abiotic influences on theinteractionofgrapepowderymildew(Erysiphe necator)andgrape(Vitis vinifera).Chairperson:Dr.RobertSeemChristine KrausResearch Experience: Plant biotechnology and genetics,Pseudomonas syringaepv.tomatotypeIIeffectorsInterests:Plant-microbeinteractionsandplantimmunityChairperson:Dr.GregoryMartin

Susanne ScheufeleResearch Experience: Biogeochemistry, invasive pestbiocontrolandpopulationbiologyInterests: Populationdynamicsandfieldmanagementofsoil-bornepathogensinorganiccroppingsystemsChairperson: Dr.HeleneDillardMatt TancosResearch Experience:Xylella fastidiosa detection viananomechanical resonator arrays; cortical structuring inOxytricha fallax; and themicrobiological treatment ofmunicipaldrinkingwater.Interests: Identifying the movement ofClavibacter michiganensissubsp.michiganensisinthexylemoftomatoes,andthedevelopmentofnovelplantpathogenicdetectiontools.Chairpersons:Dr.ChrisineSmart&Dr.MarcFuchs

Timothy WestlakeInterests: Understanding the molecular and geneticcomponentsbehindplant-microbeinteractions.Chairpersons:TBD

Barbara McClintock Award WinnersGillian Turgeon and Greg Martin

Eachyear, two to three graduate students in the PlantSciencesatCornellareawardedtheBarbaraMcClintock

Award.This year twograduate students,BradfordCondonandAndreVelasquez,intheDepartmentofPlantPathology&Plant-MicrobeBiology received the award.The awardhonorsDr.McClintock, a geneticist,whowon theNobelPrizeinPhysiologyorMedicinein1983forherworkwithmobilegeneticelements(transposons).McClintockbeganherscientificcareeratCornellwhereshereceivedherBS,MS,andPhDinthe1920s.ThetimeshespentasastudentandyoungresearcherandherassociationwithGeorgeBeadleandMarcusRhoadesatCornellwere,inherwords,“byfar,themostinfluential[events]indirectingmyscientificlife.”TheBarbaraMcClintockAwardwasestablishedbyanendowmentfromDr.RobertRabsonandprovides$1,650totherecipientsforsupportingresearchandtravel.

Bradford’sadvisorisGillianTurgeon.Bradford’sworkisongeneticandfunctionalanalysesofmechanismsbywhichfungiobtainironandmanageoxidativestressontheirhosts.Forthis,heusesthenecrotrophCochliobolus heterostrophus, andthe hemibiotrophic close relative,Setosphaeria turcica, to comparemechanisms used by related taxadiffering in pathogenic lifestyle ontheircommonhost,maize.Inaddition,Bradford,whohasaminoringenomicsandbioinformatics,spearheadstheTurgeonlab’sCochlioboluscomparative genomics effort aimed at identifyinggenomicsignaturesassociatedwithpathogenspecializationondifferentcerealhosts.

Andre’sadvisorisGregMartinandhiscommitteemembersareAlanCollmerandDanKlessig.Andrestudiestheinteraction

oftomatowithPseudomonas syringaepv. tomato to gain insight into themolecularbasisofplantimmunity.Hedevelopedamethodfordeterminingthepossibleinvolvementofindividualplantgenes in the immune responseandthenusedthismethodtoexamineover3,000genes.Thiswork,whichwas a collaborationwithDr. SumaChakravarthy in the Martin lab,resultedinthediscoveryof14novel

plantimmunitygenes.Andreiscurrentlystudyingonetomatogene,Bti9, to understand how it acts to inhibit bacterialinfection.HeisanauthoronfivepapersderivingfromthisworkandplanstofinishhisstudiesinMay2012.

Bradford Condon

Andre Velasquez


Graduate Students

Congratulations to Our Newest Alumni2011MichelleMoyer Ph.D. January

MarinBrewer Ph.D. August

SantiagoMideros Ph.D. August

JonathanOliver Ph.D. August

A.PaolaZuluaga Ph.D. August

Amara R. Dunn Receives the Robert Gilmer Graduate Student AwardDavid Gadoury

AmaraR.Dunnwas the 2011 recipient of theRobertGilmerGraduateStudentAward.TheawardisnamedinhonorofDr.RobertM.Gilmer,amemberofCornellUniversity’sDepartment of Plant Pathology at theGenevaExperimentStation from1950 to 1975.Dr.Gilmer is remembered asan outstanding plant pathologist, colleague, andmentor,internationallyrespectedforhiscontributionstoourknowledgeofvirusdiseasesoffruitcrops.Hisgenerousgiftcreatedtheendowment that bears his name.Dunn received the awardinrecognitionofherexcellenceinacademics,research,andservice to theDepartment of Plant Pathology and Plant-MicrobeBiology.HerMSresearchonPhytophthorablightcausedbytheoomycetePhytophthora capsiciwasconductedatCornellUniversity’sDepartmentofPlantPathologyandPlant-MicrobeBiologyunder thedirectionofDr.ChristineSmart.MoreaboutDunn’sworkcanbeseenat:http://www.cals.cornell.edu/cals/plpath/directory/camp-a.cfm.

Amara Dunn receiving the award from Dr. Wayne F. Wilcox, associate chair of the Department of Plant Pathology and Plant-Microbe Biology.

Dunn Wins “Art in Phytopathology”ContestForthethirdconsecutiveyear,theGraduateStudentCommitteeof theAmericanPhytopathological Society sponsored the“Art in Phytopathology” contest. Entrieswere judged infour categories:DigitallyAltered,Arts andCrafts,Wacky/Humor, andMicroscopic.This year,AmaraDunn (Ph.D.studentworkingwithChrisSmart)wonBest inShowandfirstplaceintheArtsandCraftscategoryforhersubmission“Whichcamefirst: the sporangiumor the zoospore?”.ThepieceisaUkrainianegg,decoratedbydippingtheegginaseriesofdyesandapplyingwaxtoportionsoftheeggaftereach dye in order tomaintain the underlying colorwhentheeggismovedtoanewdye.Afterthelastcolorhasbeenapplied,thewaxisremovedfromtheegg.Traditionally,eggsaredecoratedwithsomecombinationofgeometricpatterns,free-formshapes,andimagesfromnature.ThepatternonthiseggfeaturestheasexualsporesoftheoomycetePhytophthora capsici(sporangiaandzoospores).Allcontestentries,aswellaswinnersintheotherthreecategoriescanbeviewedonline:http://www.apsnet.org/members/apsleadership/comm/Pages/ArtinPhytopathology.aspx

“Which came first: the sporangium or the zoospore?” Amara Dunn’s Ukrainian egg decorated with spores of Phytophthoracapsici won Best in Show and first place in the Arts and Crafts category in the 2011 APS Art in Phytopathology contest.

Congratulations to Those Students Who Have Passed Their ‘A’ Exam2011AmaraDunn May ChristineSmart

TiffanyJamann June RebeccaNelson

LisaJones November ChristineSmart

TienTran November XiaohongWang

http://www.cals.cornell.edu/cals/plpath/directory/camp-a.cfm

http://www.cals.cornell.edu/cals/plpath/directory/camp-a.cfm

http://www.apsnet.org/members/apsleadership/comm/Pages/ArtinPhytopathology.aspx

http://www.apsnet.org/members/apsleadership/comm/Pages/ArtinPhytopathology.aspx


CongratulationsTwo Teaching Awards for George Hudler!Kathie Hodge

It’snosecret thatGeorgeHudler isamongCornell’sbestteachers.Inthelastyearhe’swontwodifferentundergraduateteaching awards:First, the2011Louis andEdithEdgertonCareerTeachingAwardofCALS.Andsecond,theStephenH.WeissPresidentialFellowship,whichconfersapermanent

title, “WeissPresidentialFellow,” and even a bitof cash.We nominatedhimfortheseelitehonorsbasedonhiscreativeandexemplary career as ateacher,includingstudentadvising, mentoring,service, outreach, andespeciallyhisexceptionalclassMagicalMushrooms,MischievousMolds. In2011 enrollment in thiscourse topped 520; over

6000studentshavetakenitsince1991.Hiscoursehasbeenwidely emulated inNorthAmerica and beyond—one ofourrecentgradswasspecificallyaskedtodevelopasimilarcourseinhernewfacultyjob.GivenGeorge’spopularityanddedicationtoteaching,wewerenotatallsurprisedtohearthathe’dswepttheawardsthisyear.

Thebestpartofthenominationprocesswasfindingpastandpresentstudentswhojumpedatthechancetowritealetter.Theirlettersconvergedonafewpoints:Caring;Funny;Inspiring.Herearesometellingquotesfromthesupportingletters.

Thetypeofexcellencethathasthegreatestpositiveimpacton us undergraduates is the uncommon excellencewhichGeorgeHudlerexudes:specialthoughtfulnessandadaptabilityininstructionandthedesiretoformmeaningfulrelationshipswithundergraduatestudentsfortheirsuccessfuleducation. Ihadneverbeforebeensocaptivatedbyaclass.Myeyeswereopenedtoanewandfantasticfieldthatisalltoooftenoverlooked. Everylecture…wasfilledwiththesamewit,charisma,andintellectthatisGeorgeHudler. His impactonme, in turn, impactsmystudentsand thepeoplethatIworkwithasascienceeducator,andIamsurethesameistrueforcountlessotherCornellians. IgraduatedfromCornellnineyearsago,butmyinteractionsand experienceswithDr.Hudler in class and through thefacultyfellowprogramcontinuetoimpactwhatIdotoday. Since arriving atCornell in 1942 as an undergraduatestudent,Ihaveonlyencounteredtwoprofessorswhoselectureswereinthesameclassofexcellence. Youhave never seen such an astonishing collection ofmushroomnecktiesinyourlife!

George Hudler receiving his Edgerton Award from CALS Dean, Kathryn Boor

George Abawi Elected APS PresidentWayne Wilcox

In June 2011, GeorgeAbawi was elected to begin a4-year term in the presidential lineage of theAmericanPhytopathologicalSociety(VicePresidentin2011,President-Elect in2012,President in2013, ImmediatePastPresidentin2014).GeorgereceivedhisPh.D.inPlantPathologyfromCornellin1970underthedirectionofthelateBillMai,andjoinedthefacultyattheGenevacampusin1972,wherehehasremainedactiveeversince.

George’scareerhasfocusedonthebiologyandecologyofsoilbornediseasesofvegetablecropscausedbyfungiandnematodesandtheirintegratedmanagement.Georgeiswellknown to vegetable growers and advisors throughoutNewYork, theNortheast, and theworld,where he has traveledextensively.His recent research projects have emphasizedmicrobialinteractions,identificationofresistantgermplasmsources, and the development of soil-IPM programs forvegetableproductionsystems.HeisachartermemberoftheinterdisciplinaryCALSSoilHealthteam,whichreceivedtheDean’s award for outstanding achievements in extension/outreachin2008.GeorgehasreceivedseveralawardsfromAPS, including theNortheastDivisionAwardofMeritandrecognitionasaFellow.HehasalonghistoryofservicetotheSociety,includingChairoftheAPSFoundation,DirectoroftheOfficeofInternationalPrograms,APSrepresentativetotheInternationalSocietyofPlantPathology,associateeditorofPlantDisease andPhytopathology, andPresident of theNortheastDivision.WaytogoGeorge!

George Abawi elected APS President


Dan Klessig: APS 2011 Noel T. Keen Awardee for Excellence in Research

Forthethirdtimesinceitsinceptionin2003,aPPMBfacultymember has received the

NoelT.KeenAwardforResearchExcellence inMolecular PlantPathology fromTheAmericanPhytopathological Society.Thelatest recipient isDanKlessig,who received the award at theannualAPSMeetinginHonoluluonAugust7,2011.

DanKlessigwashonoredforhisgroundbreakingworkonplantimmunity.Klessig’swork overthepast30yearshasestablishedhow plants protect themselves

againstmicrobial pathogens.Hehasalsouncoveredlinksbetweenplant and animal immunity thathave significant implications forbothplantandanimalhealth.

Klessig‘slaboratorywasfirsttodemonstratethatsalicylicacidisa

criticalsignalingmoleculeforactivationoftheplants’immunesystem.Hislabwasalsothefirsttoestablishadefense-relatedfunction for nitric oxide in plants. In recent break-throughstudies, his groupdemonstrated thatmethyl salicylate is amobilesignalthattriggersheightenedresistancetoasecondaryinfectioninthedistaluninfectedtissueoftheplant;theyalsoidentifiedakeyfactorthatisinvolvedatfourdistinctlevelsofplantimmunity.

Asastudentstudyinggeneregulationinhumanviruses,Klessighelpeduncover thephenomenonofsplitgenesandRNAsplicing,includingalternativesplicing.Thesediscoverieshelpexplainthedevelopmentofhumandiseasessuchascancerandhowtherelativelysmallnumberofgenesinthehumangenomecanencodeanorganismascomplexashumans.

GregMartinwas recipient of theNoelT.KeenAwardin 2010 andAlanCollmer in 2003.Gregwas recognizedforhispioneeringwork in the tomato,Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato (Pst)pathosystem.Thisworkincludedi) cloning of the first recognitionalresistance (R) gene,Pto,whenapost-doctoralfellowwithSteveTanksley;ii)thefirst demonstrationof the physicalinteractions between an avirulence(Avr) factor and its cognateRprotein(i.e.AvrPto andPto) that provided amolecularexplanationforgene-for-genespecificity;andiii)

identificationofasecondtypeIIIeffectorofPstrecognizedbyPto,AvrPtoB.An elegant series of studies byMartinand his students onAvrPtoB revealed that it contains twofunctionallydistinctdomainsandthatevolutionofgene-for-geneinteractioncanoccurat the levelofdomainswithinasingleprotein.

WorkwithJenSheenatHarvardandformerpost-doctoralfellows Jian-MinZhou atNational Institute ofBiologicalSciences,Beijing,revealedthatAvrPtoandAvrPtoBinhibitpathogen-associatedmolecular pattern (PAMP)-triggeredimmunity (previously called basal resistance) and supporttheirmodel thatPto acts as a decoy.Martin andhismanycollaborators have provided key components in a newconceptual framework for plant-bacterium interactions thatinvolvestypeIIIeffectorsinteractingwithtwolevelsofplantdefense,andtheirstudieshaverevealedaremarkabledegreeofmolecular subterfuge by both host and pathogen in theevolutionofgene-for-geneinteractionsystems.

AlanCollmerwasthefirstrecipientoftheNoelT.KeenAward in 2003.Alan hasmademajorcontributions to the understanding ofpathogen virulence factors (effectors)and their transport/ secretion intohostcells or tissue.Alan’s early studies onErwinia chrysanthemidemonstratedthemultifunctionalnatureofvirulenceandhowseveralpectate lyasescontributedincrementally to bacterial soft rotdisease.Subsequentmajorcontributionsincludei)cloningafunctionalclusterof“out”genesfromE. chrysanthemi,whichenabledEscherichia colitosecretepectatelyasesandotherrelatedvirulenceproteinswhicharepartofthetypeIIIsecretionsystem;ii)cloningandcharacterizationofP. syringae’shrp(hypersensitiveresponseandpathogenicity)genes,which encode the type III secretion system (TTSS)sharedwith animal pathogens; iii) demonstrating thatAvr factors(andothereffectors)aredeliveredinto thehostcellby theTTSS; and iv) proposing in 1996with J.R.Alfanoa newmodel forbacterialplantpathogenesis, inwhich thecentraleventinpathogenesisistheTTSS-mediatedinjectionofAvr-likeeffectorproteinsintoplantcells,suchthatinsideplantcellstheseproteinscollectivelypromotevirulenceunlessthepresenceofanyoneofthemisrecognizedbyRproteinsthattriggerplantdefenses.PerhapsAlan’slargestimpactonmolecular plant pathologywas sequencingofPstDC3000genome (completed in2003)and subsequentbioinformaticandexperimentalanalysis,whichidentifiedoneofthelargestinventories of effectors from plant or animal pathogenssecretedbytheTTSS.

Alan,Greg,andDanareFellowsoftheAmericanAcademyofMicrobiologyinrecognitionoftheirimportantcontributionstothegeneralfieldofmicrobiology.

Klessig’s work has e s t a b l i s h e d h o w p l a n t s p r o t e c t themselves against microbial pathogens.

Congratulations

Dan Klessig

Greg Martin

Alan Collmer


Gary Bergstrom receiving the Excellence in IPM Award from Don Rutz, Director of NYS IPM program, at the Soybean and Small Grains Congress in Waterloo, NY on February 10, 2011. (Photo by Curt Petzoldt)

Bergstrom Awarded “Excellence in IPM”

Additional Noteworthy Items Dr.DavidGadoury,LauraWakefield,Dr.LanceCadle-Davidson,Dr. IanDry, andDr.Robert Seem’s paper“EffectsofPriorVegetativeGrowth,InoculumDensity,Light,andMatingonConidiationofErysiphe necator”chosentobeusedforthecoverofPhytopathologyandwasalsotheeditor’spickforJanuary2012

Dr.TomBurrawardedanHonoraryDoctorateDegreefromHobartandWilliamSmithColleges

Dr.LanceCadle-DavidsonnamedtheUSDA-ARS-NAAEarlyCareerScientistoftheYear

AmaraDunnreceivedtheCALSLandGrantGraduateFellowship

Dr,DavidGadouryappointedAmericanPhytopathologicalSocietyInternalCommunicationsOfficer

JonathanOliverwontheAmericanPhytopathologicalSocietyFoundationStephenA.JohnstonStudentTravelAward

JohnGottulawon theAmericanPhytopathologicalSocietyFoundationRobertFultonStudentTravelAward

CongratulationsAmy Andersen Named Employee of the Year

AmyAndersen,administrativeassistantintheDepartment'sGeneva office,was namedEmployee of theYear at

theNewYork StateAgricultural Experiment Station in aceremonyearlylastyear.Amy,whobeganherjobin1998,wasenthusiasticallysupportedbycurrentandpastdepartmentchairs,faculty,andstafffromdifferentunitsacrossGeneva.Multiplelettersinsupportofhernominationfocusedonseveralrecurrent themes: the quality of herwork, her dedicationto her job, her volunteer efforts in theworkplace and thecommunity,herhelpfulnesstoothers(“Sheisoneofthemostkind,generouspeopleIknow.Shealwaysthinksofothersandworkshardtoassistthemandmakethemhappy.”),andherenrichmentoftheworkatmosphere(“Thedayisjustbrighterseeinghersmilingface.”).

People likeAmyare theglue thatholdourdepartment,college,anduniversitytogether,andit'sgreattoseethemgetrecognizedforwhattheydo.Congratulations,Amy.

Station Club Vice President Alan Taylor, left, presents gifts to honoree Amy Andersen as Tom Burr, station director, and Shelly Cowles, Station Club president, look on.

Tiffany, Santiago and Lucas

Birth Announcement

SantiagoMideros and Tiffany Jamann would liketo announce the birth of

theirsonLucasXavier,bornOct30,2011at5:37pm.Heweighed6 lbs 6 ounces andmeasured19.5inches.


KarenSnover-CliftwaspresentedherOutstandingTeamServiceAwardforhereffortsaspartoftheNPDNNationalDatabase ProgramAreaCommittee.The committee hasreviewed,corrected,updated,and/orverifiedtheinformationwithinthedatabaseforover22,041hostandpestcodesusedbyallNPDNNationalRepositoryclients.

RachelMcCarthywas recognized as e c o n d t im e f o rher effor ts as theeditor of the NPDNNews. The NPDNNews is a monthlyp u b l i c a t i o n t h a tincorporates articleson announcements ofnew identifications,diagnostics tools andtips, regional news,committee updates,upcoming meetinga n n o u n c e m e n t sand reviews of pastmeetings, andmuch,muchmore.To learnmoreabouttheNPDNandCornell’sroleastheNortheastRegionalCenter,pleasegoto:www.NPDN.organdwww.NEPDN.org.

Cornell Faculty and Staff Receive National P l a n t D i a g n o s t i c N e t wo r k ( N P D N ) Outstanding Service AwardsKaren Snover-CliftDepartment of Plant Pathology&Plant-MicrobeBiologyFaculty and Staff recently received recognition for theiroutstandingservicetotheNationalPlantDiagnosticNetwork(NPDN).Awardswere presented at theNPDNNationalMeetingAwards ceremonywhichwas held during the 3rdNPDNNationalMeetingonNovember7,2011.

The NPDNOutstanding Team ServiceAward waspresentedtoKarenScottforhereffortsaspartoftheNPDNPortalTeamandforthedevelopmentofthenewportalusedfortheNPDNnationalandregionalwebsites.

George Hudler and RachelMcCarthy also receivedan OutstandingTeam ServiceAward for theireffortsaspartoftheSentinelPlantNetwork (SPN)Deve l opmen tTeam.The SPNw a s c r e a t e di n 2 0 10 a n dwas des ignedt o e n g a g epublic gardenprofessionals,volunteers andvisitors in thedetectionofhigh-consequencepestsandpathogens.

The NPDN Portal Team: Karen Scott, Andrew Coggeshall & Eileen Luke

The Sentinel Plant Network Team: George Hudler, Rachel McCarthy & Amanda Hodges

The NPDN National Database Committee: Carla Thomas, Eileen Luke (for Mike Hill & Virginia Russell), Nancy Gregory, Marty Draper, Karen Rane, Linnea Skoglund, Anne Vitoreli, Andrew Coggeshall, Karen Snover-Clift & Nancy Taylor

Rachel McCarthy was recognized for her efforts as the editor of the NPDN newsletter.

Congratulations

http://www.npdn.org/newsletter

http://www.npdn.org/newsletter

http://www.NPDN.org

http://WWW.NEPDN.org


Summer Research Scholars ProgramWayne Wilcox

TwentyfourscholarsparticipatedinasummerResearchExperienceforUndergraduatesprogrambasedatCornell

University’sNewYorkStateAgriculturalExperimentStationatGeneva.The SummerResearchScholarsProgramrecruitsnationally.Admissioniscompetitive,andstudentsadmittedto the program are provided support for travel, a stipend,andarehousedatnearbyHobartandWilliamSmithCollege.Accepted students can choose from a variety of researchprojectsandarementoredbyfaculty,postdoctoralandvisitingscientists,andgraduatestudents.Theyarealsoencouragedtoparticipateinafield-orientedcourseinAgriculturalDiseasesandPests,wheretheyvisitberrycrop,treefruit,vegetable,grainandforagecropproductionfields;golfcourses;forest,shadetreeandornamentalplantings;andvineyardandwineryoperations.Thesummersessionculminatesinaconferencewherethescholarspresentpostersontheirresearch.

Expanding Our Outreach

Pictured are the 2011 Summer Research Scholars Program participants.

Elementary Science Education Gets a Boost from Geneva’s Experiment StationWayne Wilcox

For the seventhconsecutiveyear,ChrisSmart andotherscientists from theGeneva campus partneredwith the

GenevaCitySchoolDistricttoenhanceelementaryscienceeducationandbringagriculturalsciencetolocal3rdand4thgradestudents.During the three-phase programkids learn aboutsoil, plants, insects, plant diseases, sustainability and foodproduction throughan inquiry-based,hands-on program.Typica l o f o therschooldistrictsacrossNewYork, there isless than one hourofelementaryschoolscience educationscheduled perweekin the Geneva CitySchoo l D i s t r i c t .Helping to fill thisvoid,theprogramhassparked an interestinscience,resultinginexpansionofthe4-Hprograminthedistrictandimprovementsinstandardizedsciencetestscores.

During thefirst phase,Chris and horticulturalist SteveReinersvisiteach3rdgradeclassinthedistrict(approximately180children).Therearehands-onactivitiesandeachstudentplantsseedsthatarethenmovedtoagreenhouseontheGenevacampus. InMay, eachof theclassesvisits thecampusandlearnsabouttheresearchperformedthere.TheSeem/Gadourylab becomes amajor outreach center for aweek,with allstudentscheckingoutpowderymildewunderthemicroscope.

Chris Smart getting elementary students excited about agricultural science!

Third grade students from the Geneva City School District get an hands-on demonstration of greenhouse activities from Chris Smart.

Thestudentsalsolovetoseehowwelltheirplantsgrewinthegreenhouse.FinallyinthefirstweekofJune,Chris,Steveandtheirlabgroupsbringtheplantstotheelementaryschoolandhelpthestudentsplanttheirgarden.

The second phase of the project is a 5-week summersciencecampthatisopentoanyinterestedstudentswhohavejust completed the3rdgrade.Whilenotall studentschooseto attend, about 20 students generally enroll.The camp iscoordinatedanddirectedbyChrisandtwoschoolfaculty,withguestappearancesbyotherGenevacampusfaculty.Thefocusofthecampisoninquiry-basedlearning,wherestudentsaregivenasubjectandtheyhelpdevelophypotheses,collectdataanddrawconclusions.Eachweekhasascientific‘theme’suchassoilscience,horticulture,microbes(wherewestudyplantpathogens),entomology,andcookingwithveggies.Studentsalsotakefieldtripstothelocalfarmer’smarketandBejoSeeds,andbeekeeperscomeforavisittoo!

Thefinalphaseof theprogram isa fallharvest festivalwhichisatruecelebration,withstudentscookingnutritioustreats,andpresentingsomeofthescientificknowledgegainedthroughworkinginthegardens.Theentireschoolisinvitedtoattend,aswellasparentsandcommunitymembers.


Department Doings Game NightAllison Jack

ThePPPMBGraduateStudentAssociation sponsored adepartment-widegamenightorganizedbyJayWorleyand

AllisonJack.Faculty,staff,studentsandtheirfamiliesbattledtheIthacawinterblueswithScrabble,Sjoelbak(Danishtabletop shuffleboard), jigsawpuzzles, card games and vintagevideogamesonthebigscreenintheWhetzelseminarroom.Theeventwaswellattendedandgoteveryone’scompetitivespiritgoing inpreparation for the springbowlingnight, sothereareplanstomakethewintergamenightanannualevent!

Bowling TournamentBradford Condon

Theannual department bowling tournamentwas held atHelenNewmanLanes onFriday,April 8, 2011.As in

previousyears,theeventwaswellattendedbystudents,faculty,staff, and their families.Aftermuchbeer, pizza, and soda,“TheBuzzards”tookhomethebestteamaverageof133,with“TheGilberts”closebehindat130.“TheBuzzards”werealsovotedbestteamuniform.ThebestindividualscoreswenttoNickGilbert(197),MikeKwiatkowski(180),andEricCarr(168).Forthethirdyearinarow,theFaculty/Staffaveraged(114) above the Students/Postdocs (112). The graduatestudent associationwould like to thank the department fortheirgenerousfundingsupportforthisevent,aswellasallparticipantsforafunnightout.

Winners of the “Best Team Uniform” “The Buzzards”Dot Messenger, Jackie Armstrong, Jennifer Hudler, Mike Kwiatkowski, George Hudler

The back of “ The Buzzards” bowling T-shirt.Jamie Carr and Sandra Jensen work on a jigsaw puzzle with vintage video games on the big screen in the background.

Around the table:Ying Chen, Alan Collmer, Ellen Crocker, Keith Perry, Sandy Hudler, George Hudler, and Lisa Jones play a variety of games at the 2011 game night.


Department Doings PLAY BALL!!! The Bill Mai Spring Classic Returns to the Department Liz Brauer and Eric Carr

Greetingsalumnisportsfans!Thissummer,twomotivatedPPPMBgraduatestudents,LizBrauerandEricCarr,were

determinedtorevivetheannualdepartmentalsoftballgame.TheBillMaiSpringClassicStudent-Staff-Facultydepartmentsoftballgamedatesbackto1956andhadcontinuedannuallyuntil1994.Aftera17-yearhiatus,thegamewasrenewedonMay21,2011.ThegamewasheldatButtermilkFalls,priortotheannualPlantSciencesBBQ.Participantsandobserverscouldnothaveaskedforbetterweather,thedaywassunnyandhumid.Playerswereabletostayrefreshedthankstoplentiful

amoun t s o fbeerandhome-made treats, along traditionfor this event.Teams weredivided intostudents-post-docs versusfaculty-staff.

StewartGraywasselectedcaptainof thefaculty-staff teamwhileLizandEricco-captainedthestudentsandpostdocs.Bothteamswerewellattended.Spiritswerehighandmuchhecklingcouldbeheardfrombothsides.Dr.JimLorbeer,aveteranoftheBillMaiSpringClassic,keptscoreoveraverytightgame.Thoughclose,thelongexperienceofthefaculty-staffteamcouldnottameveryenthusiasticstudentsandpost-docswhowon11to9.Theirenthusiasmboiledoverafewtimesduringthegame.Mostmemorably,anexcitedShawnKenaleyaccidentallylaunchedhisbattowardsthird-baseman,GiovannaDanies,afterswingingpastapitch.Thestudent-post-docteam’svictoryhasbeencommemoratedwithanewplaquethathasbeenaddedtotheBillMaiSpringClassicmemorialhanging

inthecopierroom.The rev iva l o fthe depar tmentsoftball game hasstimulated fondmemo r i e s a n dmany individualswould like to seethegamecontinue.Nex t yea r, t hefacultyandstaffarehoping to avenge

their narrow defeat!Hiring younger staff and faculty hasbeenadvisedtocompetewiththeyouthofthestudentsandpost-docs.

Occupy ‘Cheers’Eric Carr

Backbypopulardemand,‘CheerswithyourPeers’returnsforthethirdstraightyeartothePlantScienceBuilding.

Throughout 2011, faculty, staff and students have beenoccupyingPlantScienceinprotestofgradingtests,writinggrantreports,andarduouslabwork.Theirgoal,thoughunclearandcloudedbyfermentedbeverages,hasbeenroughlydefinedasendingthethirstcausedbythetenured1%andseeingthatthe99%receiveacoldbeverageandlightsnacks.

‘CheerswithyourPeers’hasbeenasemi-weeklypeacefulprotest,orsocialevent,thatgathersfaculty,staff,andstudentsfromalldepartmentswithinPlantScience.What’smore,theDepartment ofPlantBreeding andGenetics has joined themovement.Thisyeartheeventwasco-hostedbyBryanSobelofHorticulture andEricCarr ofPlantPathology&Plant-MicrobeBiology.

Whentheweatherwasfair,‘Cheers’occupiedtheSusanA.HenryTerrace, adjacent to thePlant ScienceBuilding,whileduringthechillymonthsthethirdflooratriumofPlantScienceprovidedtheencampment.From4–6pmonThursdayafternoons, the usual suspects and curiousmembers of thedepartmentslineduptoreceivedrinksandlightsnacks.

Socializingiscriticalforfinancialequalityandresearchdevelopment.Weeklyeventssuchas‘Cheers’andPPPMB’sF r i d a y c o f f e ebreak provide anatmospherewhereco l l eagues canshare laughs andthe i r thoughts ,research relatedor not. Formanyindividuals it’s anentertainingmini-vacation to theirworkweek.

S p e c i a lthanks go out toRachelMcCarthy(PPPMB) for providingflyer and email advertisement, themembers of theNortheaset PlantDiagnosticNetwork forfrequently providing snacks, andDaveKalb (PPPMB) forprovidinghisfinehomebrewonoccasion.

‘Cheers’willcontinuetosupportthe99%inthecomingmonths andprovide refreshments for all thosewho attend.Keepyoureyesopenforanemailorflyerannouncingthenext‘Cheers’event.Anddonotbealarmedifyouhearahumanmicrophonedeliveringtheslogan,“wearethe99%andwearethirsty”,youareencouragedtobelly-uptothebarandseethatyourglassgetsfilled.

There was a great turnout for the softball game.

Shawn Kenaley takes a mighty swing!

Some of the regular “Cheers with your Peers” crew enjoying the outdoor terrace.


Department Doings Rose Loria Retires

ProfessorRoseLoriaacceptedthepositionasChairoftheDepartmentofPlantPathologyattheUniversityofFlorida.

Duringher31yearsatCornellshebecameafullprofessor,servedasChairfortheDepartmentandAssociateDeanforCALS.ThepositionatGainesvillewillallowhertoutilizetheresearch,extension,teachingandadministrationskillsandknowledgethatsheacquiredhere.

Jay and Ellen showing off their trophy for best meat chili.

The annual chili cook off is a great way to enjoy delicious food while meeting plant researchers from other departments.

Chili Cook-offLiz Brauer

Thisyear’s7thannualchilicook-offwasagreatsuccess.OntheafternoonofNovember18,aspiringchefsfromPlant

Pathologymixedtheircouragewiththeirspices,cookingoffagainstPlantBreeding,Horticulture,PlantBiologyandSoilSciencedepartments.PlantPathologywaswellrepresentedwithsevendelectablesubmissionspreparedby(amongothers)GeorgeHudler,KevinMyers,SandraJensen,JayWorley,EllenCrocker,AliceBulkeley and IanSmall.Bowlswerefilled,appetitesweresatisfiedandtongueswere(occasionally)burntasstudents,facultyandstaffenjoyedthisdeliciousevent.Whenthedustandstomachssettled,PlantPath’sownJayWorleyandEllenCrockerreignedsupreme.Their“ColoradoDreamingChiliVerde”tookhomethemuchcoveted“BestMeatChiliAward.”ThismarksthefirsttimeinyearsthataPlantPathsubmissionwonacook-offaward.TheDepartmentishopingtobuildon this triumphnextyear, repeatingas championsinthemeatcategory,aswellastakingthe“WildCard”and“Vegetarian”awards.Inotherwords,achilitriplecrown.

Rose with a giant size tub of gatertone sunscreen

Rose standing in front of the gift of plywood for hurricane protection for her new home in Florida while Stewart Gray presents another gift.

Alan Collmer and Gillian Turgeon present Rose with a blueprint of Plant Science building depicting all the renovations made during her time here.

A photo of Minns garden was one of Rose’s parting gifts.


Facilities Herbarium NotesScott LaGreca (Curator)ThisreviewhighlightsactivitiesofthePLANTPATHOLOGYHERBARIUM (CUP) from December, 2010 throughDecember,2011.

StaffDr.ScottLaGreca,aprofessionallichenologistandCALSalumnus (B.S. ‘91), assumed the role ofCurator inApril.Scott specializes in chemotaxonomy (especially of thegeneraRamalina andLecanora), the lichens ofBermuda,and the lichen floraof the northeasternUnited States. Scotthasauthoredover30papersonlichensandbryophytes.Hecomesto usmost recentlyfrom the BerkshireMuseum inwesternMassachusetts,whereheworked for threeyears as Natura lScienceCoordinator.S c o t t i s a l s o aresearch associate attheFarlowHerbariumofHarvardUniversity(whereheworkedformanyyears)andtheNewYorkStateMuseuminAlbany,and is a formerCurator ofLichens at theNaturalHistoryMuseum,London,UK.

RobertDirig,Curatorforthepastthreeyears,retiredfromthepositioninDecember,2010.BobhasstayedonatCUPas theAnnaE. JenkinsHonoraryCurator of Lichens, anofficial title dating from1990 thatwas restoredby formerDepartmentChairGeorgeHudlerinMay.Inthiscapacity,Bobisre-packetingandcuratingCUP’shistoriclichenspecimensaswellascontinuinghisresearchonthelichenfloraofNewYorkState.HealsomaintainsourbeautifulFrontGardens.Long-timeCUPvolunteerDougMurrayassistsBobinalloftheseeffortsonaweeklybasis.

NewvolunteerBetsyCrispell, a recent graduate of theCornellPlantationsNaturalAreasAcademy,beganworkingatCUP in September.A former bookkeeper,Betsy’s firstprojectwastohelpbringourherbariumloanandgiftrecordsup-to-date,forthepurposeofincorporatingthemintoournewherbariumcomputerdatabasecalledSpecify.SheiscurrentlyputtingthefinishingtouchesonacomputerizedlistofallthefungalfamiliesandgenerarepresentedintheAtkinsonGeneralCollection,whichcomprisesoverhalfoftheholdingsofthehistoricAtkinsonHerbarium.

AssistantCuratorTorbenRusso continues in his skillfulstewardship of our currentNSF grant (Atkinson’s Fungi:Curation andDatabasing at theCornell Plant PathologyHerbarium).Overthepastyear,Torbenhashiredoveradozennewstudentinterns,whowereresponsiblefordatabasingandrepairingourAtkinsonHerbariumspecimens,photographs,andnegatives.Todate,over20,000Atkinsonspecimenshavebeendatabased.

Herbarium HappeningsSummary of statistics: Eight loans (comprising 127specimens)weresentfromCUPin2011andthreegiftsand/orexchanges(comprising113specimens)werereceivedfromotherinstitutions.

Outreach & VisibilityOnMarch 22,Cornell Physics Professor PaulMcEuenreleasedanovel entitled“SPIRAL.”Thebook, a scientificthrillerset(inpart)inthePlantPathologyHerbarium,featuresatorture-resistantheroinebasedonHerbariumDirectorKathieHodge!Thenovelhasalreadybeensoldin16countries,andplansareintheworksforafilmadaptation.

OnMay25,CUPhosteditssecondOpenHouse,whichwasafantasticopportunityforournewCuratortoputthe“welcomemat”out!AspartoftheOpenHouse,anewexhibiton”SlimeMolds”was installed in the herbarium display case; theexhibit,whichisongoing,interpretsthesefascinating,fungal-l ike organisms usingphotographs, specimensand reprints from CUPcollections.Also at theOpen House,Ann andAllanWitztum (the latterofBen-GurionUniversityoftheNegev,Beer-Sheva,Israel)presentedCUPwithasetofeightoriginalwoodengravings by celebratedbo tan ica l i l l u s t r a to rElfriedeAbbe,whoonceworked at Cornell. Theprints,whichweremadein1967,illustratedifferentspeciesofmushrooms,andareoneofonlyfiftysetsinexistence.

Atotalof104visitors,includingstudents,otheracademics,andtourgroups,crossedourthresholdin2011.

Visitors WelcomeTheCornell Plant PathologyHerbarium is located at 214GallusRoad, offGameFarmRoad, about twomiles fromcentralcampus.Parkingisfree.Allarewelcometovisitourmuseumandsee thecollection.Volunteeropportunitiesarealsoavailable.Please sendamessage toouremail address([email protected])toscheduleavisit.

Scott LaGreca, curator of the herbarium

One of eight original Elfriede Abbe wood engravings of mushrooms presented to CUP in 2011.

mailto:cup-herbarium%40cornell.edu?subject=


Facilities Plant Pathology Photo LabKent Loeffler

2011wasa“buggy”yearinthePlantPathPhotoLab.Workingwith RickHoebeke of the EntomologyDepartment,

over 250 species ofinvasiveweevilsandbark beetles werephotographed for aforthcomingbookonthese little critters.I u s ed a “ d e epfocus” technique tophotograph dorsaland lateral aspectsofpinnedspecimenst h a t R i c k h a dgleaned from insectcollections all overNorthAmerica.Thistechnique involvestak ing up to 20

images of each specimen at slightly different focal depthsandthenusingspecializedsoftwaretocreateone“deepfocus”image.Mostoftheseinsectsareverysmall(2–5mm),whichnecessitatesaprettycomplexcameraset-up(seepicture).

The process became streamlined when a CognisysStackShotsystemwaspurchasedandputtouse.Thissystemprovides amotorized, programmablemicro-focusing railthat automaticallymoves the camera through its series ofexposures.AfterthestackofimagesismadetheyareprocessedandcroppedinPhotoshopandthenrunthroughHeliconFocusProsoftwaretocreatethefinalimage.

Theweevil imageswere so visually arresting that theMannLibraryagreedtoshowthemintheir2ndFloorGallery(seepicture).Fortheshow,Iprinted27largeimages(2x3′)whichwehungwithRick’s informative captions detailingeachspecimen’srangeandeconomicimportance.Wekickedaroundseveralnamesfortheexhibit,including“DeliverUsFromWeevil”and“SpeakNoWeevil”,butsettledon“FearNoWeevil”(seepicture).TheshowwasverywellreceivedandstayedupfromJunetoOctober.CALSCommunication

even decided to use one ofthe images as the cover foritsfallCALSNewsmagazine(see picture). In SeptemberRickmovedtotheUniversityof Georgia where he hasarranged to show the printsat theGeorgiaMuseum ofNatural History sometimein2012.

2011alsosaw thePhotoLab involved in makingnumeroustime-lapsemoviesasKathieHodge andDaveKalbnever seem to runoutofideas.Afewoftheyear’sclassicsinvolvepaperbacknovelssproutingoystermushrooms,coffee (bothwith andwithout cream)molding, pumpkinsrottingandbioluminescentfungiglowinginthedark.ManyofthemoviescanbeviewedontheCornellMushroomBlog(http://blog.mycology.cornell.edu/) and thePhotoLabwebsite (http://www.plantpath.cornell.edu/PhotoLab/Default.htm).Speakingofthelabswebsite,MollySwartwoodoftheDiagnosticLabisdoingacompletemakeoverofthesite.We’rehopingtohavethenew,slickersiteupandrunninglaterthisspringsobesuretocheckbackregularly.

InOctoberIgaveaseminarintheTechnicalPhotographyDepartmentoftheRochesterInstituteofTechnologyentitled:“TheCornellPlantPathologyPhotoLab—100+YearsandStillClicking” (seepicture).Asproof thateveryone loves time-lapsemoviesIwasapproachedafterwardsbythreestudentsinthe BiomedicalP h o t o g r a p h yD e p a r t m e n ta b o u t d o i n ginternships inthe lab to learnt i m e - l a p s etechniques.Asa result, ClaireSmith, a junioratRITwillspendnex t summerin the Pho toLab setting up,processing and editing time-lapsemovies. One of herresponsibilitieswillbetopreparethebestonesforpostingonYouTubesobesuretocheckthemoutnextfall.

Deep focus camera set-up

Cover of CALS News Fall 2011

Title slide for RIT talk

“Fear No Weevil” show at Mann Library

http://blog.mycology.cornell.edu/

http://www.plantpath.cornell.edu/PhotoLab/Default.htm

http://www.plantpath.cornell.edu/PhotoLab/Default.htm


Facilities The Uihlein Farm—Record Production and in the Black by Keith Perry

TheUihleinFarmofCornellUniversity, the foundationseedpotatofarmforNewYorkState,isatcapacity!We

operateonathreeyearrotation,andinanygivenyearthereare~35acresavailableforproduction.In2011,weplantedandharvested34.4 acres, sowe are near capacity. For thepastfouryearswehavehadhigherthanaverageyields,with275cwt(hundredweight)peracrein2011;thisisthoughttobedue inpart to improved soilmanagementpractices.Weharvested9457cwtofseedpotatoes;that’salmost1millionpoundsandarecordinrecentmemory!Theseedisstoredonsiteuntilspringdelivery,andatthisproductionlevel,weareatcapacityforourstoragefacilities.

OneoftherecentgreatsuccessstoriesfortheCornellpotatoprogramhas been the development of twonewprocessingpotatovarieties‘Waneta’(NY138)and‘Lamoka’(NY139).NewYork growers havefirst access to newvarieties, andwithincreasedyieldsandquality,theyprovideacompetitiveadvantage.ThesevarietieshavebeenahugesuccessfortheUihleinFarminparticular,asapproximatelyhalfouracreageis nowplanted toWaneta andLamoka.The availability ofthesenewvarietieshasensuredtherelativelyhighlevelsoforders theFarmhas received andhelps to ensurefinancialsecurityfortheoperation.Thefinancialclimatecontinuestobequitechallenging,butin2011Farmincomehasexceededexpendituresforthefirsttimeinthepastdecade.Weareintheblack!Continuingthistrendwillbeessentialinthatwehavenecessarycapitalexpendituresthathavebeendeferredandareupcoming.WithdecreasingoruncertainrevenuesfromStateandFederalsources,theFarmisincreasinglydependentonincomefromsalesandservices.FortunatelytherehasbeendemandforCornell’snewpotatovarietiesfromotherpotatoseedproducersinthemidwestandnortheasternstates.In2011,onlysevenremainingNYseedproducersorderedseed,thustheinterestinseedfromotherstateshelpstosustaintheUihleinFarm.Moreimportantly,itaddressesoneofthemissionsofthe

UihleinFarm,tocontributetothemanagementofthegoldennematode (GN).Cornellpotatovarietieshave resistance tothis cyst nematode and their planting in other states helpsto limit thepossibilityof theGNspreading tootherpotatoproductionareas.

Oneofthebiggesthighlightsof2011wastheacquisitionof a new (used) potato harvester that saved on labor andallowedarecordharvesttobecompletedinnearrecordtime.Wealsorecentlyacquiredausedgrainharvesterthatallowsustoharvestseedfromwinterrye,ourrotationalcrop.ThissavestheFarmthecostofpurchasingnewseedeveryyearandprovidesadditionalrevenuefromthesaleofsurplusrye.ThesepurchaseswerefacilitatedbytheFarmmanager,ChrisNobleswhohasanaptitudeforandinterestinfarmmachinery;heisaCornellalumnusfromAgriculturalEngineering.TheFarmisveryfortunatetohaveacommittedstaff.Weareoptimisticthat2012willbeanothergoodyearattheUihleinFarm!

New State-of-the-Art Inoculation Chamber for Plant Path! by David Kalb

Long,longagowhenthecollegetoredowntheoldPlantScience greenhouses we also lost one of ourmist/

inoculationchambersasitwastoobigandtoooldtomove.Thecollegehelpedusbyreplacingthatoldunit,constructedofrustingmetal,rottingwoodandasbestoscontainingtransite.Thenewmistchamberismadewith100%stainlesssteel.Ithasslidingglassdoorsonthefront,fixedglassdoorsonthebackandglassonthetop.Therearenoadditionallightsotherthanwhatcomesinthroughtheglass.Theunithasrefrigerationcoilsinsidetoadjusttemperaturestoanoptimumrangeandtwocommercialhumidifiers.Itworksverywell,primarilyforproducingdiseaseplantsfortheteachingprogramandsomeresearchuse.

Dimockgreenhousehasbeenthehometoanolder,rusty,transiteunitformanydecades.With departmentfunding another new andimprovedstainlesssteelunithasjustbeencompleted.Itis similar to the stainlessunit at Plant Science butimproved inmanyways.The humidifiers are nowmounted outside the unitconservingspaceinsidethechamber.Thebestimprovementwas the removal of the refrigeration coils from inside thechamber.Thesewerereplacedwithsmall,thin,fin-typecoilsthat circulate chilled (orwarmed)water from an externalwaterbath.Digitalcontrolsnowallowforautomaticon/offforhumidityatalmostanysetpointandmoreaccurateandtighttemperaturecontrols.Wehopeitwillgetmanydecadesofuse.

Aerial view of the Uihlein Farm of Cornell University. The Farm buildings are in the center and fields are to the left. Above the Farm buildings and to the right is the Heaven Hill Farm, the former residence of Henry Uihlein II, the Farm benefactor. Photo courtesy of Dan Clune.

The water bath that cools or heats the chamber is the box on which the plastic gallon jug sits.


Plant Disease Diagnostic ClinicSandra Jensen

ThePlantDiseaseDiagnosticClinicreceivedsomeveryinterestingsamplesin2011.ThefungusDerma balsamea

wasfoundonhemlockandmadeourlistofmostinterestingbecauseitwasthefirsttimewehaveidentifiedthisfungus,whichcausesa twigblighton thishost.Asyoucansee inFigure1,thefruitingbodycanproduceratherextensivesporetendrilswithoneofthemoreexoticonesbeingpicturedhere.

WehaveidentifiedthefungusthatcausesJapaneseapplerustinNewYorkafewtimessinceitsrecentintroductionintotheUnitedStates in2004.However,wehavenot seen theteliosporestageuntilthisyear,asshowninFigure2.TheseGymnosporangium yamadaeteliosporeswerecollectedfromagallonjuniper.Thedetailinthisphotoisanotherinterestingaspectofthissample.Ithasbeeneditedor“Photo-shopped”ifyouwill.Wetookseveralphotosatdifferentlevelsoffocusandlayeredthemtoproducebetterdepthperception.

Figure 1. Dermeabalsameasporulating on a hemlock twig.

Thesametechniquewasusedtocreatetheimageofthewood decay fungus, Inonotus dryadeus in Figure 3.Oldfungalconks like thisoneareoften lackingspores thatareneededforidentification.Inthiscasehowever,wefoundsetaecharacteristicof Inonotus dryadeuswithin theporesof thefungus.Weweresoenamoredbythesesetaethatwewantedtocaptureagoodphoto,butcouldnotfocusourcameraonmorethanafewsetaeatatime.Inthiscase,theoverlappingtechniqueprovidedtheabilitytocreatethefeelingofpeakingintotheporeofthisfungus!

TheClinichasreceivedmanygarlicsamplesexhibitingsymptoms of an infestation by the garlic bloat nematode,Ditylenchus dipsaci,overthepasttwoseasons.Infact,analysesforthispesthavebecomeourmostcommonrequestedservice.AsseeninFigure4,symptomsincludeexhibitingyellowskins,lossofroots,androughenedtissueatthebasalplate.

In2011wealsoredesignedourentirewebsite,sopleasetake amoment to check out the new version at: http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/.

Figure 4. Garlic bulbs infested with the bloat nematode may exhibit yellow skins, loss of roots, or roughened tissue at the basal plate.

Figure 3. Setae within a pore of the wood decay fungus Inonotusdryadeus.

Facilities

Figure 2. Gymnosporangiumyamadae teliospores.

http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/

http://plantclinic.cornell.edu/


In The NewsStudents Flock to ‘Magical Mushrooms’ CourseCornell Chronicle, Joyce Wu, February 2011

No. 69 on the unofficial list of “161 Things EveryCornellianShouldDo”istotaketheMagicalMushrooms,

MischievousMolds class, something thatmore than5,500studentshavecheckedofftheirBigRedtodolist.

Nowinits19thyear,thecoursehasitselfmushroomedintoauniversitywidephenomenon.

Thefirst time itwas offered, plant pathologistGeorgeHudlerexpectedperhapstwodozenstudents.“ThatfirstdayIwalkedinthere,andtherewere225peopleintheclassroom.[Since]then,it’sjusttakenoff.It’scrazy,butit’sbeenalotoffun,”saidHudler,professorandchairoftheDepartmentofPlantPathologyandPlant-MicrobeBiology.Thecourse,normally taken by 250–300 students annually, boasts anenrollmentof520studentsthisspring.

The large class size, however, doesn’t appear to deterthestudents’appreciationofthematerial.SaysConnieHsia‘11:“ProfessorHudlerlecturesinaveryeloquentstylethatengagesstudents.Comingtoclassisalmostlikestorytellingtime.Whatwouldseemlikeaboring,evendisgusting,topicismadeextremelyenthralling.”

Hudlerwasfirstinspiredbytheworldoffungiwhenhefirstpeeredatafungusunderamicroscopeasanundergraduate.

To provide suchopportunit ies forhis students, despitethe large class size,Hudler offers, forexample, a three-day open lab demo,wherewalk-ins can observe giant puffballs, grow oystermushroomsandeventakehometheirownslimemold.

“Anunexpectedbenefitoftheopenlab,”saysHudler,“ismeetingstudents.Asthecoursehasgottenbigger,Ilookoutattheauditoriumandseeaseaoffacesinthedark.Butwhenyoucomeforthesedemonstrations,wecantakethisvastgroupofpeople,spreadthemoutandhavesomeofthatreallyimportantone-on-oneinteraction.”

Other special classevents includeanannualmushroomfeast, a buffet of delicacies frommushroom quiche tomushroombread,andafungushunt.

Despitethelackofabiologybackgroundamongmanyofhisstudents,Hudlersayspartofhisgoalisto“tryandreachthose peoplewhohave an aversion to scientific courses. IpurposelyleaveoutalotoftheterminologybecauseIthinkyou justdon’tneed that todevelopanappreciation for thenaturalworld.”

He i s e v i d en t l ysuccessful:“I’mnotevenenrolledinthisclass,butIstillattendeverylecturebecause I’ve alwayswanted to take a fungiclassandfindthemreallyamazing,” saysNatashaShylo‘11.“Theprofessoris a great lecturer, andI enjoy his jokes andpersonalstories.”

Tobettertailorthecoursereadingswithhislectures,Hudlerpennedthebook“MagicalMushrooms,MischievousMolds,”asthecoursetextin1998.Thebookisnowusedbyuniversitiesacrossthecountry.

“OneofthethingsI’mproudestof,”saysHudler,“isthatthereareanumberofotheruniversities thathave takenupsimilarcourses.I’mproudthattheysawwhathappenedhereatCornellanduseditasanimpetustogetthemselvesgoing.”

After almost two decades, theMagicalMushrooms,MischievousMoldscoursekeepsevolving,partlyduetothefeedbackHudlerreceives.

“When people leave the course, there’s a fairly largenumberthatdon’tforgetaboutit,”Hudlersays.“Theysendmearticles;theysendmeexperiencesthey’vehad.ThatkindoffeedbackjustletsmeknowthatwhatI’mdoingismaking[a]difference.”

What’s so magical or mischievous about mycology?

Medicinalmolds,yeastsforbakingandbrewingandhallucinogenicmushrooms are just someof the topicssproutedinthecourseandbookofthesametitle,“MagicalMushrooms,MischievousMolds.”

From the edible and the hallucinogenic to thepathogenicvarietiesoffungi,Hudlerspinsstoriesaboutthepossibilitythatthe“bewitched”inSalem,Mass.,mayhavehadfungus-inducedhallucinations;thediscoveryofpenicillin—andhowBritishscientistssmeareditssporesontheirclothesincaseGermanyinvaded;andcitesotherintriguingfactsaboutfungiand‘shrooms:aflatoxincouldbetheperfectmurderweapon,thatperhapstheoldestandbiggestlivingthingonEarthisa1,500-yer-oldmushroominMichiganthatspanssome37acres,andthatthecauseofthe1960massdeathof100,000turkeysinEnglandwasduetoacommonstoragemold.

Hudlernotesthatwhilesomefungiaregoodtoeat,others can cause death.Yetmany others enhance oureverydaylivesbyservingasanaturalpesticideorasaningredientinaperfume.--Susan Lang and Blaine Friedlander

George Hudler works with students in his Magical Mushrooms, Mischievous Molds class. Photo by Jason Koski/University Photography

Lab Coordinator David Kalb explains the growth of GanodermaApplanatum (tree fungus). Photo by Jason Koski


In The NewsScientists Tackle Threat to New York’s Garlic IndustryCornell Chronicle, Kara Lynn Dunn, November 2, 2011

CornellnematologistGeorgeS.Abawi,Ph.D. ‘70, isonamission tohelp saveoneofNewYork’sburgeoning

agriculturalcommodities:garlic.Oncefillingjust11acresoflandin1992,garlicproduction

has grown exponentially, to 306 acres in 2007, up from153acresin1997.NewYorkisnowthefifthlargestgarlicproducingstateinthenation.Butanoutbreakofanewcroppestisthreateningthe$24.5millionindustry.

FirstspottedbyCornellCooperativeExtensionvegetablespecialistChristyHoeptinginOrleansCountyinJune2010,themicroscopicstemandbulb(bloat)nematode(Ditylenchus dipsaci)hasnowbeenidentifiedingarlicseedandsoilsamplesfrom17NewYorkcounties.

Abawi, professor of plant pathology and internationalagriculture,analyzesthesamplesathislabattheNewYorkStateAgriculturalExperimentStationinGeneva,N.Y.

Herecentlyreceiveda$69,122grantfromtheNewYorkStateDepartment ofAgriculture andMarkets to extenddiagnosticexpertisetogrowersstatewidein2012.Aportionof thefundswillsubsidizenematodeanalysisofgarlicandsoilsamplessubmittedbygrowers.

“StemandbulbnematodehasbecomewidelydistributedacrossNewYorkstateprimarily through infectedseedandwillworsenifwedonotidentifytheinfectedseedandsoil,”Abawisaid.

Garlic SeedFoundationDirectorDavidStern says thehelpwillbeinvaluabletofighting“arealproblemthatstartsslowbutgrowsexponentially,andthenextyearcandecimateyourcrop.”

Somegrowershavesufferedupto80percentcroploss,

costingthemseveralthousanddollars,asgarliccanretailformorethan$10apound.Theparasitealsoaffectsonions,leeks,chives,celery,somevarietiesofpeasand lettuceandotherplants;morethan120plantscanserveasahost.

“Ten percent of allNewYork vegetable farms reportgrowing garlic. Its high value per acremakes garlic afinanciallyimportantaspectofourvegetableindustry,”saidextensionspecialistCrystalStewart.

Bloatnematode-infectedplantsarestunted,withyellow,limpleavesandsufferprematuredefoliation.Bulbsgraduallydiscolor to dark brown, and become soft, lightweight andcracked.

Youngnematodes feedon leaves, stems andbulbs, andadultsmove into the soil once plant tissues become toodegraded.Theycanthenspreadtonewsitesthroughplantingmaterial,oncontaminatedequipmentandby irrigationandsurfacewaterrunoff.

Abawisaidfarmerscan limit thepest’sdistributionanddamage through crop rotation, debris removal, hotwaterwashingoffieldequipmentandmoistsoils,asthenematodelikesdryconditions.

“Garlicgrowersmusttakeaholisticapproachtoproduction,fromsiteselectionandpestcontroltoproperharvestingandstorage, andmust not transport infected seed or plantingmaterial,”Abawisaid.

Hoeptingwarned that even “perfect-looking” bulbs canhavelowlevelsofnematodethateventuallycauseproblemsduringproduction,soitisimportanttousecleanseed.Abawisaidcleansoilisequallyimportant,sobothshouldbetested.

“Growersdonothelpthemselvesbyplantingcleanseedininfestedground,”headded.

Formoreinformationabouthowtosubmitsoilandseedsamplesfortesting,[email protected].

Cornell nematologist George S. Abawi, left, with extension associate Robert Hadad checking garlic in the field. Photo by Christy Hoepting

A bulb that’s been damaged by the stem and bulb (bloat) nematode (Ditylenchusdipsaci) on the left; a healthy bulb on the right. Photo by Christy Hoepting


Researchers Discover How Pathogen Causes Speck Disease in TomatoesCornell Chronicle, December 14, 2011

Researchershavediscoveredhowthestructureofaproteinallows a certain bacteria to interferewith the tomato

plant’simmunesystem,causingbacterialspeckdisease.Thework helps explain howPseudomonas syringae, a

bacterial pathogen, has evolved to cause disease andmayopenthedoortobreedingtomatovarietiesthatareresistanttospeckdisease,whichcanpromptcostlylossesintomatocrops.

Theresearch—conductedattheBoyceThompsonInstituteforPlantScience(BTI)atCornellinconjunctionw i t h s c i e n t i s t s a tTsinghuaUniversity inBeijing—is publishedin theDecember issueof the Cell Host andMicrobe.

“Ourwork presentsclear evidence of amolecular arms race orcoevolution betweena host p lant and apathogen,” said GregMartin, an expert ontomatodiseaseresistanceat theCornell-affiliatedBTI,aCornellprofessorof plant pathology andplant-microbe biology,andleadauthorofthepaper.

ThepaperdescribesthecrystalstructureofAvrPtoB—aprotein injected into plant cells byPseudomonas syringae thatinterfereswiththeplantimmuneresponseandallowsthebacteriatomultiply.ThepaperalsoprovidesanunderstandingofhowAvrPtoBbindsandinterfereswith theplantproteinBAK1,whichactswith immunereceptors toactivateplantdefenses.

Some tomato varieties are able to resist infection byPseudomonassyringaebecausetheyexpressproteinsFenandPto,whichdetectAvrPtoBandmountadefense.

ThestructurescharacterizedinMartin’sresearchrevealedthat two domains ofAvrPtoBhave a structural similarity,suggesting theyarosefromanancestralavrPtoBgene.ThepaperalsoidentifiespartofBAK1thatisstructurallysimilartothedefenseproteinPto.

Martin’sresearchissupportedbytheNationalInstitutesofHealthandtheNationalScienceFoundation.

The crystal structure of the AvrPtoB-BAK1 complex is shown superimposed on a tomato leaf that has symptoms of bacterial speck disease.

A Fo r t h co m i n g Boo k A i m s to H e l p Researchers Identify Non-native Weevils in Glorious Detail.CALS News, Fall 2011

Celebratedinsong,folklore,andstatuary,thebollweevil—scourgeoftheAmericancottonindustry—isperhapsthe

bestknownagriculturalpestintheUnitedStates.Butnotsofor itsweevilcousins,a lacunathatE.RichardHoebeke,ataxonomic and survey entomologist recently retired fromtheDepartment ofEntomology, is looking to remedywiththe help ofKent Loeffler, photographic specialist in theDepartmentofPlantPathology,intheforthcomingbookAn Illustrated Identification Guide to the Adventive (Non-Native) Weevils (Curculionoidea) of North America.

Specifically,Hoebekeandco-authorJamesLaBonte,ataxonomicentomologist with the OregonDepartment ofAgriculture, hopeto enable specialists and othersto accurately recognize NorthAmericannon-nativeweevils.

Like the bollweevil, whichemigrated f rom Mexico toBrownsville,Texas, andbeyond,manyofthe3,200NorthAmericanspeciesofweevilarenotnativetoour fauna, either unintentionallyintroduced via commerce and atravelingpublic,ordeliberatelyreleasedforweedbiocontrol.

Becauseof their great diversity, ability to thrive in anyclimate,associationwithvirtuallyallplants,andaburgeoningglobal marketplace, weevils are especially successfulhitchhikers to all of theworld’s continents.The accidentalintroductionofexoticweevilsintoNorthAmericahasoccurredsince early colonial days.And although a large number ofweevilsintroducedintoNorthAmerica,orsoontobeonthecontinent’s shores, are innocuous and apparently cause nomeasurabledamagetoplants,manyareseriousplantpests,suchasthefearedJapanesePearWeevil(below).

The number of describedweevil species on the planetis calculated to be about 62,000,with the total number ofexisting species likely approaching 220,000,meaning thatentomologistshavedescribedjustoveraquarterofthediversepopulationofthisimportantandlargestgroupofherbivorousbeetles.

Formore information and amazing images of variousweevilsphotographedforthebookseehttp://calsnews.cornell.edu/2011-fall/features/weevil.html

In The News

A photo from the “Fear No Weevil” collection by Kent Loeffler.

http://calsnews.cornell.edu/2011-fall/features/weevil.html

http://calsnews.cornell.edu/2011-fall/features/weevil.html


Strep-resistant Fire Blight Found in New York Orchards Stacey Shackford, Cornell Chronicle, January 6, 2012CornellplantpathologistshaveissuedawarningtoNewYorkappleandpeargrowersafterdiscoveringastrainoffireblightthatisresistanttosuchtraditionaltreatmentsastheantibioticstreptomycin.

For50years,thediseasehasbeenkeptatbayusingtheantibiotic,butstreptomycin-resistantstrainsofthediseasewererecentlyfoundinfourlocationsinWayneandOntariocounties.

“This is a serious situation that we need tomanageeffectively.Therapididentificationofthisoutbreakpositionsustoimplementacoordinatedplanleadinguptonextyear’sgrowing season,” saidHerbAldwinckle, professorofplantpathologyandplant-microbebiologyatCornell’sNewYorkStateAgriculturalExperimentStation(NYSAES)inGeneva.

Incoordinationwithcolleaguesa t NYSAES a n d Co r n e l lCooperativeExtension,Aldwinckleis developingguidelines growerscan follow to reduce the threat.Upcoming sessions at the FruitandVegetable Expo and CCEFruit Schools in several countieswill also provide growers withopportunitiestolearnmoreabouttheoutbreakandpossiblesolutions.

Fire blight is caused by thebacteriumErwinia amylovora,earningitsnamefromthescorchedappearanceofinfectedleavesandbranches. Its symptoms includeblackeningofflowers andyoungleaves, resulting in crop loss andevendeathoftrees.

In The NewsStrep-resistantfireblightwasfirstidentifiedinCalifornia

in 1971, and since then it has been found inWashington,Oregon,MissouriandsouthwestMichigan.DiseasednurserytreesfromMichiganwerethesourceofalimitedoutbreakinNewYorkin2002.Atthattime,Aldwinckleandcolleagues,inclosecollaborationwithgrowers,ensuredthatallinfectedtreesweredestroyedandsurroundingfarmswerechecked.

Thateradicationappearstohavebeeneffective.“Forthepast10years,extensionstaffhavesentinsamplesforroutinesurveillance,andwehadn’tfounditagain,”Aldwincklesaid.

ThiscurrentinfectionwasfirstspottedinWolcott,N.Y.,where a persistent suspectedfire blight infection evaded astreptomycinsprayregime.SampleswereimmediatelybroughttoAldwinckle’slab.

Samplingwasnecessarilylimitedinlatefall,sothefullextentoftheoutbreakwillbeunclearuntiladditionalsamplesare studied, but the latest results indicate there are severaloutbreaksofstrep-resistantfireblightinWayneandOntariocounties.

Aldwinckle saidthe fact that one ofthesites isanurserydoes complicate themanagement plan.For tunate ly, tha tnursery has a strictrogueing program—inwhich infectedplants are removedfrom the soil andd e s t r o y e d— t h a tshouldminimize thechanceof spread,headded.

However,Aldwinckle noted that some infectionsmightnotbeimmediatelyvisible,sothere’sapossibilitythatasmallnumberoftreeswiththestrainwereinadvertentlyshippedtogrowers.

Headvisesallgrowerstoexaminetheirtreescarefullyforanysymptomsoffireblightthatmaydevelopafterplanting.These recommendations apply to all trees purchased,withparticularattentionforthosefromNewYorkandMichigannurseries,wherestrep-resistantfireblightisknowntooccur.

Heisalsoexploringotherwaystoeradicatetheblight.“Theantibiotickasugamycinisaseffectiveasstreptomycin,

andinsomewaysitisamoreappropriateantibioticbecauseitisnotusedinhumanorveterinarymedicine,”saidAldwinckle.“KerikCox, an assistant professor of plant pathology atCornell,isleadinganapplicationforaSection18emergencyregistrationfromtheEPA[EnvironmentalProtectionAgency]forgrowerstouseKasumin[commercialkasugamycin]nextspring.”

This test used on suspected Erwiniaamylovora bacteria (SR Ea) is done by inoculating the surface of green pear halves with the test strain. Blackening of the surface and production of mucoid ooze is clear indication of pathogenicity. This picture shows results of the test with a strep-resistant strain.

Herb Aldwinckle examines an apple tree for fire blight.

A tree with a fire blight infection due to strep-resistant SR Ea. Fire blight infection blackens leaves and prevents them from dropping. These SR Ea-infected branches have blackened leaves still attached.


Cornell University College of Agriculture and Life ScieCALS Plant Pathologists Put the Squeeze on Citrus DiseaseCALS Chronicle, Amanda Garris, January 16, 2012

WithFlorida’s$9billioncitrusindustrythreatenedbyadeadlybacterialdisease,RickKress‘73askedscientists

atCornell’sNewYorkStateAgriculturalExperimentStationinGenevaforhelp.Threeyears later, the researchershavedelivered several genetically engineered orange trees thatcouldprovidealong-termsolution.

ThetreeswereengineeredtoprovideanaturalresistancetotheAsiancitrusphyllid,theinsectresponsibleforspreadingthedeadlybacterialdiseasehuanglongbing--alsoknownascitrusgreeningbecauseitcausesperpetuallyimmaturegreenfruitthattastesbitter,medicinalandsour.FirstconfirmedinFloridain2005,thediseasehasspreadtoallcitrusgrowingcounties,andgrowersfaceacostlyregimeofcuttingoutdyingtreesandsprayinginsecticidestoreducethepsyllidpopulations.

Far from the citrus growing climate and the federallyquarantinedpsyllidpest,Cornellscientiststurnedtoamodelsysteminstead:tomatoes.

Plant pathology and plant-microbe biology facultymembersKerikCox andHerbAldwinckle first identifieda handful of naturally occurring insecticides produced bybacteria,fungiandplantsknowntofendoffothertypesofinsects.

ResearchsupportspecialistEwaBorejsza-Wysockaandtechnicians PeggyAbbott and ShirleyKuehne then usedgeneticengineeringtoinsertcandidategenesindividuallyandingroupsintotomatoplants.TheyfoundsometransgeniclineswereveryeffectiveinmakingthetomatoleavesunappealingtotomatopsyllidinsectsandinsertedthemostpromisinggenesintotheHamlinorangevariety.

The diminutive transgenic orange plants await theopportunity to prove themselves against theAsian citruspsyllidonitshometurfinFloridawhiletherequiredpermitsandapprovalsarebeingsecured.Aldwinklesaidthathehopestohavesomeresultsofthetrialswithinayear.

Kress,presidentofSouthernGardensCitrusInc.,oneofthelargestcitrusgrowersandprocessorsofnot-from-concentrateorange juice inFlorida, is in theprocessofcontinuing theoverall research in Florida through evaluation of diseaseresistanceonacommercialbasis.Heisoptimisticthattheworkwillhavetremendouseconomicbenefits.“Itwouldalsohaveapositiveenvironmentalimpactbyreducinginsecticidesprays,becauseinFlorida,tryingtoeliminatetheAsiancitruspsyllidisasdauntingastryingtogetridofmosquitoes,”Kresssaid.

In The News

Huonglongbing impedes the distribution of nutrients within the tree, resulting in fruit that are abnormally small and frequently unmarketable due to off-flavors. Photo by Rick Kress

The Asian citrus psyllid spreads the bacteria that cause huonglongbing, also known as citrus greening. Photo provided by the USDA

Research support specialist Ewa Borejsza-Wysocka transferring genes for insect resistance into the “Hamlin” orange variety, growing in tissue culture. Provided by the USDA


Disease UpdatesN e w O r n a m e n t a l Pe a r R u s t i n t h e NeighborhoodMargery L. Daughtrey

Thepeartrellisrust,causedbyGymnosporanium sabinae,has previously been known inEurope and thePacific

NorthwestaswellasCanada.Michiganreportedthediseasefor the first time in 2009.Beginning in 2009, unusuallycolorful(yellowtored)leaflesionshavebeennotedonsomeornamental street-side callery pears in scattered locationsin southeasternNewYork; symptomswerealso found inanurseryin2011.Thelesionsoftenshowspermagoniaatthe

center that aid in their identificationas a rust, but identification and rustdevelopmentcanbothbethwartedbythe secondary development of largebrownlesionscausedbyananthracnose

fungus,Glomerella acutata.TheappearanceofleafsymptomsinthespringistypicalofaGymnosporangiumrust,buttheaecia of pear-trellis rustwith their intriguing acorn-shapedperidiadevelopunusuallylate:thesporesarereleasedfromOctober toDecember (until the leaves drop). In 2011 the

range expansion of this rust intoNewYorkwas formallydocumentedbymembersoftheDepartment,usingsequenceanalysisoftheD1/D2domainofthe28srDNAtoshowthatG. sabinaehasbeenfoundonPyrus calleryana‘Bradford’and/or‘Chanticleer’inHempstead,Moriches,Riverhead,andStatenIsland,NY.Furtherinformationonsusceptibleandresistanthostcultivars,alternatehosts,andeffectivecontrolmeasureswillbepursued,becausethisspecies’valueasanornamentalhasbeenassociatedwithitseaseofmaintenance.

Mature sporulation of Gymnosporangiumsabinae on the undersurface of a Callery pear leaf

Reddish lesions of pear trellis rust accompanied by brown areas of anthracnose infection on leaves of callery pear

Street tree in Riverhead, NY with thin canopy due to combined effects of pear trellis rust and anthracnose

The lesions often show spermagonia at the center .


Disease UpdatesImpatiens Downy Mildew Margery L. Daughtrey

Thefavoriteannualflowerofeveryonewithashadyyard,Impatiens walleriana,was dramatically attacked by a

downymildewinseveralareasacrossthecountrylastsummer.Theresult:extensivedefoliation.Plasmopora obducenswasfirstrecordedin1897inVermontonanativeimpatiensspecies,and has been seen repeatedly since around the country onImpatiens capensis (syn. I. biflora andI. noli-tangere) andI. pallida.However,thediseaseonthecultivatedornamentalI. wallerianawascuriouslyfirstseenintheUnitedKingdomin2003,wherethepathogenhadnotpreviouslybeenrecorded.ImpatiensdownymildewwasfoundinafewgreenhousesinNewYorkandafewotherstatesforthefirsttimein2004,butwasnotnotedinanyAmericangardensuntil2009inSaratogaCounty,NY.ThediseasehascontinuedtoharmimpatiensinSaratogaCountyin2010and2011,suggestingthatP. obducensmayhavetheabilitytooverwinter.

We have observed oospores in the stems of infectedplants—thesecould,alas,provideamechanismforsurvivalinflowerbedsfromonegrowingseasontothenext.In2011,cateredtobythestormyweatherofhurricanesIreneandLee,thisdownymildewcauseddramaticsymptomsingardenson

Two leaves from an impatiens with downy mildew infection; the diagnostic white frosting of sporangia shows clearly at right

The same landscape seen in mid-September after weeks of weather conditions conducive to spread and infection of downy mildew

Landscape planting of impatiens in an eastern Long Island garden in July

Leaf downcurling and sporangia of the downy mildew Plasmoparaobducens are apparent on the impatiens leaves at right

CapeCodandeasternLongIsland.Butthediseasewasalsoconfirmed for thefirst time in parts ofCalifornia, Illinois,Indiana andMinnesota, indicating that diseased plantsmighthavebeendistributedunwittinglyby thegreenhouseindustry.Althoughmostimpatiensareproducedfromseed,some vegetatively-propagated types are available, so seedtransmissionisnottheonlypossiblescenario.

Muchresearchisneededtoanswertheimportantquestionsaboutthisdisease.AtrialoffungicideeffectivenessatCornell’sLong IslandHorticulturalResearch&ExtensionCenter inRiverhead,NY showed protection frommandipropamid,mefenoxam,azoxystrobinanddimethomorphonimpatiens.Althoughfungicidetreatmentmaybehelpfulforprotectingplantsduringgreenhouseproduction,disease-freeorresistantplantswill be needed for the landscape. Fortunately theNewGuinea impatiens, Impatiens hawkeri, has very lowsusceptibility to this downymildew—goodnews for plantbreedersandforgardenerswhowouldliketousesomesortofimpatiensinbedsthatwerestrickenwithdownymildewlastyear.OnlyImpatiens wallerianaisahostforthisdisease,butitissuchanimportant beddingplantthattheornamentalsindustryisfocusingintentlyonsolutionsforthisnewproblem.


New and Ferocious: Boxwood BlightMargery L. Daughtrey

Gardenersareespeciallydevotedtoboxwood(Buxusspp.)fortheirstately,historicauraandtheirreputationforbeing

relativelydeer-proof.SuddenlyaninvasiveexoticdiseasehasarisentochallengetheproductionandlandscapeutilizationofBuxusspeciesintheUnitedStates.Cylindrocladium buxicola(syn.C. pseudonaviculatum)wasrecognizedasanexoticnewpathogenintheUnitedKingdomin1994;itsoriginisstillnotknown.Sincetheinitialdetectionithasbecomeadevastatingproblem inmuchofEurope andhas also traveled toNewZealandandAustralia.Thisdiseasebeginswithroundbrownleafspotsorleaftipnecrosis,followedbyblightingandleafdrop.Thebaretwigsshowblackcankers.Thefungusfruitsabundantlyonbothleavesandtwigsundermoistconditionsand the disease progresses very rapidly: the disease cyclerequiresonlysevendays.

BoxwoodblightwasfirstreportedintheUnitedStatesinOctober2011.Asofthiswriting,thediseasehasbeenofficiallynoted in Connecticut,Maryland,Massachusetts, NewYork, NorthCarolina,Oregon,RhodeIslandandVirginia,aswellasBritishColumbia.Within NewYork, horticulturalinspectorshavefoundsingleinstancesofthediseaseinNassau,Suffolk,Westchester,andDutchesscountiesthusfar,noneoftheminthelandscape.Thelistofstates includes thosewheremanyboxwoods are producedinfield or container nurseries; plantmaterial is frequentlyshippedfromstatetostate.Spreadingtheunderstandingofthisaggressivenewdiseasepriortothespringiscritical:NewYorkStateNursery&LandscapeAssociationandtheLongIslandNurseryandLandscapeAssociationarehelpingtodistributeinformationonboxwoodblight.TheDepartmentdiagnostic

Disease UpdateslaboratoriesinIthacaandonLongIslandareworkingtohelpnurserymen,gardencenterretailers,landscapersandgardenersdeterminetheextentoftheproblem.Thediseasecannotbeaccurately identified in thefield because there are similarsymptoms causedbyPhytophthora spp. and fungi such asVolutellaandMacrophomaspp.thatcouldeasilybeconfusedwiththenewboxblight.

OncealaboratorydiagnosisofC. naviculatumhasbeenreceived, diseased plants should be bagged and sent to alandfillratherthancomposted,asthefungushasbeenshowntosurviveindeadleavesforatleastfiveyears.Becauseofthethreatposedbythedeadleaves,theseshouldbecarefullygatheredanddestroyedalongwiththediseasedplantsandtheircontainers.ReplantinganyBuxusspp.intoalandscapewherethediseasehasappearedwillberisky;usingalternativeplantgeneraisadvisedinthesesituations.OnlyBuxusspp.havebeenfoundnaturally infected;Sarcococca (sweetbox)wasfoundtobesusceptiblebyinoculation.

Gardenerswith the charge of protecting valuable oldhistoricboxwoodsshouldavoidbringinginanynewboxwoodmaterial—it will be far safer topropagate cuttings on site. Thusfar all of the cases of this diseasedescribed inCTorMAlandscapeshavebeenassociatedwithboxwoodsnewlyplantedin2011.Thediseaseisexpectedtomoveeasilyovershortdistancesviahandling,pruners,wind-drivenrainoroverheadirrigation.Longdistancespreadwillbelargelythroughthemovementofdiseasedplantmaterial.Thereisnoquarantineonthisdisease:thenurseryindustrywillneedtoself-imposeveryhighsanitationstandardstopreservethesuccessfuluseofboxwoods.Theornamentalextension program in theDepartment isworking hard toeducatetheproduction,maintenanceandretailaspectsofthegreenindustryonthethreatthatthisnewdiseaseposestoaveryvaluableornamental.

Defoliation is the ultimate effect of Cylindrocladium infection on Buxusspecies.

Boxwood blight was first reported in the United States in October 2011.

Gardeners…should avoid bringing in any new boxwood material.


Loeffler’s video used on an episode of ScienceFridayon September 9, 2011

MiscellanyKorf Suggests Sharing Your WisdomEmeritusProfessorDickKorf(now86)suggeststhatthoseof you 60 and oldermay, as he does, enjoy sharing yourwisdomwith young advice seekers around theworld.Thepremiersuchorganizationis theElderWisdomCircle.Yousharefromyourhomecomputer,atyourleisure.Andyoucanmakearealcontributiontosomeoneelse,withoutspendinga penny.Sometimes the advice receiver iswilling towriteback to your self-selectedmoniker to thankyouprofuselyforyoursuggestions.It’sassimpleaspie: justgotowww.ElderWisdomCircle.organd thenclickonOfferAdvice fordetails.Itcanmakeyourday,week,oryear.

Loeffler’s Video on Science Friday

AcoupleofKentLoeffler’stimelapsevideosofmushroomswerefeaturedonNPR’sScienceFriday’swebsiteforavideostoryentitled“RainfallBringsBumperCropofFungi”onFridaySeptember9,2011.Formoreinformationseehttp://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/201109095

NecrologyRodrigo Tarté Ponce (1936-2011)RodrigoTartéPoncediedonApril10,2011inReno,Nevada,after a struggle with cancer. Tarté obtained a Ph.D. inPhytopathologyatCornellUniversityunderBillMai.

Muriel Dickey, (1922-2011)Muriel F.Dickey, 89,wife of RobertDickey, ProfessorEmeritusofPlantPathology,CornellUniversity,passedawayonOctober18,2011.

VisitorsDr.Andrea Ficke, of the NationalAgricultural Research Service ofNorway (Bioforsk) was recently avisitingfellowatCornellUniversity’sNewYorkStateAgriculturalExperimentStation in Geneva. Dr. Ficke wasatCornell as part of a collaborativeprojectwithD.M.Gadoury andR.C.Seem(DepartmentofPlantPathologyandPlant-MicrobeBiology),C.Linn(DepartmentofEntomology)andT.Acree(FoodScienceandTechnology)tostudyvolatileorganiccompoundsasdiagnosticanddetectiontoolsforcerealpathogens.

Dr. Zvezdomir Jelev, assistantprofessorintheDepartmentofPlantPathology,AgriculturalUniversityof Plovdiv, Bulgaria;was recentlya USDA Borlaug Fellow at atCornellUniversity’sNewYorkStateAgricultural Experiment Station inGenevawithD.M.GadouryandR.C.Seem(DepartmentofPlantPathologyandPlant-MicrobeBiology)toinitiate

acollaborativeprojectontheepidemiologyandmanagementofgrapevinepowderymildew(Erysiphe necator)andgrapevinedownymildew(Plasmopara viticola).Dr.JahnDavikispresentlyavisitingfellowfromtheNationalAgriculturalResearchServiceofNorway(Bioforsk)workingwithDavidGadoury,RobertSeem,andLanceCadle-Davidson atCornellUniversity’sNewYorkStateAgricultural Experiment Station inGeneva.Dr.Davik’sworkfocusesonmlo resistance topowderymildew instrawberry(Podosphaera aphanis).Dr.AruppillaiSuthaparanispresentlyavisitingfellowfromthe

NorwegianUniversityofLifeSciences(UMB)workingwithDavidGadoury,Robert Seem, and Lance Cadle-DavidsonatCornellUniversity’sNewYorkStateAgriculturalExperimentStationinGenevaontheuseofhigh-energyLEDs andUVB to suppresspowdery mildews in greenhousecrops, and phytochrome systems inpowderymildews.

Dr. Jahn Davik

Dr. Andrea Ficke

Dr. Zvezdomir Jelev

Dr. Aruppillai Suthaparan

http://www.ElderWisdomCircle.org

http://www.ElderWisdomCircle.org

http://www.sciencefriday.com/program/archives/201109095


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