Oregon/PNW pest management recommendations are available from various online sources including PNW Online Guide to Plant Disease Control , PNW Insect Management Handbook and PNW Weed Management Handbook. Since the Handbooks are usually updated only periodically, suggestions may be technically and legally outdated. Furthermore, many recommendations may apply only to the Pacific Northwest. Obtain and follow current label directions for all agrichemicals.
Numerous links under Related Sites, Pests and Diseases and Pesticides contain descriptive and control recommendations for other producing regions. For example, The University of Maine provides outstanding online pest management guidelines for diseases and weeds as well as suggestions for seedpiece treatment, sprout control and vine killing in the Maine Pest Management Guide; Clemson University maintains a useful site for potato pest management at Pest Management Handbook (Clemson U. (See Commercial Vegetables, Irish Potatoes). The Ohio State University provides pest control information for most crops through Ohioline.Clicking on vegetables and then potatoes while in Ohioline will provide a dozen or so full-color disease control publications. Alberta potato growers can find excellent treatment of diseases and all other aspects of production and storage at Potato Production in Alberta, a topnotch, comprehensive site. Pest control recommendations for almost any producing region in North America, or the world, can be found in one of the sites linked under Related Websites in the PIE. See also CSREES State Ag Partners, and other website listings under Diseases, Insects, and Weeds, below.
Use pesticides Safely!! Wear protective clothing and safety devices as recommended on the label. Bathe or shower after each use. Know your legal responsibility as a pesticide applicator. You may be liable for injury or damage resulting from pesticide use. Don't become a neighborhood nuisance by contributing to herbicide drift onto sensitive crops.
A wealth of information on identification and control of potato diseases is readily available at various WWW sites. For your convenience, links shown here may enter target pages toward the middle or bottom and bypass important information on other topics and crops. We encourage you to investigate all linked pages thoroughly as time permits. Be certain to scroll to the bottom and study any lists of additional recommended sites since interesting new examples are added daily.
UC
IPM--Potatoes at Davis, California provides pictures and fairly complete
generic control recommendations for most diseases, insects, and weeds affecting
potatoes. Entering the site at the UCIPM
Front Door will provide similar information for dozens of other crops.
The Oregon State University
Online Guide
to Plant Disease Control similarly provides pictures, descriptions
and PNW control recommendations for most diseases of potato and other crops.
Directions for navigating the site are provided. Other broadbased sites
include the
Idaho
Plant Disease Reporter, Idaho
Potato Disease Problems, and Plant
Pathology Internet Guide. The latter is extremely comprehensive with
useful sections on weeds and biotechnology as well as diseases.
See also Disease-Related Websites below for more images, descriptions and control recommendations.
Several universities and other organizations now sponsor late blight
hot lines and web sites. The following list is probably obsolete as it
is being prepared. Check these sites often for additional new links.
Disease Control Recommendations
Oregon/PNW disease control recommendations, descriptions, and pictures are available at PNW Online Guide to Plant Disease Control.
Onlilne control recommendations for other producing regions are also readily available at sites such as maintained by the University of Maine (Maine Pest Management Guide), Clemson University (Pest Management Handbook, Clemson U), The Ohio State University (Ohioline), by the Province of Alberta (Potato Production in Alberta) and elsewhere. See Additional Disease Related Sites below. Clemson University provides an especially good site for all potato pests at Pest Management Handbook (Clemson U.). The Ohio State University provides pest control information for most crops through Ohioline.Clicking on vegetables and then potatoes while in Ohioline will provide a dozen or so full-color disease control publications. Pest control recommendations for almost any producing region in North America can be found in one or more of the sites linked under Related Websites in the PIE.
As you study the control recommendations, bear in mind that proper rotations, field selection, sanitation, spacing, and fertilizer and irrigation practices can reduce the risk of many diseases. Fields can be tested for the presence of harmful nematodes. Using seed from reputable sources reduces risk from seedborne diseases.
Because University recommendations are often outdated due to limited resources, be certain to check current labels before using any pesticide. Current labels are typically available at the following and other on-line sources:
External
Internal
Additional
Disease-Related Websites
Potatoes are attacked by a large number of insects, including several which damage tubers in the field or storage. Foliar-feeding insects can be roughly divided into chewing, sucking or rasping types based on feeding techniques. Control measures may differ considerably among the three. Insecticides which provide good control for chewing insects such as the Colorado Potato Beetle, for example, may actually increase aphid populations due to adverse effects on aphid predator populations. Carbaryl (Sevin) and certain pyrethroids fall into this category. Applying such materials without an accompanying aphicide can lead to total crop losses due to aphids and viruses. A clear understanding of species controlled is an important aspect of any insect control program.
A number of good insecticides are available for potatoes. Some systemic types applied at planting or sidedressed post-emergence (Temik, Admire, Furadan, Thimet, Disyston) can provide good control of most insects for prolonged periods. Systemic insecticides are highly desirable in most situations because they are convenient to use, persistent, predator-friendly, and typically gentle to the environment. Soil-applied insecticides obviously are not subject to atmospheric drift onto non-target areas and have only mild, indirect effects on predators and other non-target species. As with nitrogen, care should be taken to minimize leaching of soil-applied pesticides by avoiding overirrigation at all times.
Wireworms can be devastating if not controlled, especially following susceptible crops including some grasses. Control is typically achieved by broadcasting and incorporating insecticides such as Mocap and Diazinon either before or at planting. Unlike other Oregon producing areas, potatoes in the Willamette Valley are often severely damaged by the larval stage of the tuber flea beetle (as opposed to the potato flea beetle). Adult tuber flea beetles typically lay eggs near the base of the plant well into the growing season. Therefore, control is based largely on controlling the adults as necessary. Materials used for other important beetles affecting potatoes will also control the tuber flea beetle.
A number of web sites, including those in the following list,
provide excellent images and descriptions of potato insects.
General:
It is important to bear in mind that pesticide recommendations for one state, region, or country may not be legal in another. Further, University recommendations are often outdated even before they are printed due to limited resources. Always follow current label directions when using pesticides.
The PNW Insect Management Handbook presents current/recent recommended management practices for most insects of potatoes and other commercial vegetables in the Pacific Northwest. Similar recommendations are available from various sources in other potato-producing regions (Maine Pest Management Guide, Pest Management Handbook (Clemson U; Potato Production in Alberta, etc.).
Full-text labels for most pesticides are typically available online atCDMS--Agrichemical Database, C&P Press Greenbook, the Pesticide Center Online (WSU) and similar sites.
Proper rotations, field selection, and choice of variety can minimize problems with insects.
The following sites, among many others, provide general recommendations
for identifying and controlling potato insects.
Pacific Northwest:
As noted above, potato insect control recommendations for the U.S. Pacific Northwest are available in the PNW Insect Management Handbook. Additional information on safety and proper pesticide use are are also provided. Control recommendations are for information only. OSU does not guarantee success and can not accept responsibility for consequences of use.
The following sites provide a wide range of additional information on
potato insects.
Go Often to the House of a Friend,
For Weeds Soon Choke the Unused Path
-- Anonymous
Poor weed control reduces both yield and quality and can make harvest a nightmare. Fortunately, excellent potato weed control can be had through a combination of common-sense management practices and widely available herbicides. Herbicides can be applied before, at, or after planting, but first applications typically occur between planting and crop emergence. These are often followed by lay-by applications either as part of the final hilling/cultivation or shortly after. Lay-by applications are often not necessary in short-season areas or for early-harvested crops.
Weed Images
PNW
Weed Control Recommendations
Related Weed Websites
Images and related information for most weeds are available through Weed Images (Rutgers University), the UC IPM Home Page (Davis, California), and the WSSA (Weed Science Society of America). Additional information is available from various sources including Oregon Weeds.
Because of geographical effects on control methods, most of the preceding
sites limit coverage to weed pictures and descriptions. However, valuable
information on herbicides and herbicide labels are available through the
Weed Science Society of America at WSSA-Herb.
Specific control recommendations for the Pacific Northwest are provided under
PNW
Weed Management Handbook, below.
The PNW Weed Management Handbook is a valuable, searchable resource for weed management for all crops and non-cropped areas alike in the U.S. Pacific Northwest. It also contains valuable information on herbicide application, safe handling and other considerations which should be beneficial to practitioners in all producing regions. For specific PNW potato recommendations, go to PNW Potato Weed Management Handbook. Management recommendations for other areas is becoming increrasingly available at sites such as the Clemson University Pest Management Handbook, Maine Pest Management Guide, Potato Production in Alberta, Ohioline and so on. See also "Related Websites", below.
Because University recommendations are often outdated due to limited resources, be certain to check current labels before using any pesticide.Current labels are typically available at the following on-line sources: