New research project aims to give growers relevant information and enhanced tools to fight white mould and bacterial blight.

With the high cost of producing dry beans under irrigation, optimizing yields is key for the success of the industry. When it comes to managing disease threats to keep yields high, there’s no question where the focus needs to be.

“White mould is the number one disease issue in dry bean, and bacterial blight would definitely be number two,” said Syama Chatterton, Lethbridge-based Plant Pathologist with Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, who is delving deeper into these diseases through a new four-year research project funded by APG.

Forecasting white mould risk

White mould gets going through the release of millions of spores that are spread through the air during the growing season. However, spores cause the most disease when released five to 10 days before flowering. Complicating matters, most dry bean cultivars have no resistance to white mould.

This project aims to build a white mould forecasting system that could provide growers with two- to three-days’ notice that spores are present, and risk is high. To do this, Chatterton’s team began catching spores in 2017 using motorized samplers in the field, then analyzing them in the lab to see how the catch correlated to disease outbreaks. Between now and 2021, her team will field-test different spore catchers, expand field sites to other provinces and review existing weather modelling systems for suitability for forecasting.

“We hope to come up with something a producer can use and ultimately have a technology that can be transferred to a partner willing to provide this disease-forecasting service,” Chatterton said.

Expanding resistance options for bacterial blight

Bacterial blight differs from white mould in that it is primarily a seed-borne disease. With streptomycin-treated bean seeds now phased out in Canada, Chatterton is turning her attention to developing new tools for management of this disease.

Chatterton and her team are looking at three factors in their bacterial blight research. First, she’ll investigate the possibility of new seed treatment options that might help minimize the risk of the disease. Second, they’ll examine whether new cultivars bred to be resistant to bacterial blight can minimize the risk to the point that seed treatment is no longer needed. Finally, they will explore the effect of different seed sources on bacterial blight.

“One of the major ways we currently manage bacterial blight is by buying certified seed from Idaho producers where risk of bacterial blight is very low,” she said. “We’ll compare seed sources from Alberta, Manitoba and Idaho to see how that changes the risk of bacterial blight.”

With disease management a high agronomic priority, Chatterton is optimistic that she can continue to make progress that benefits growers.

“With new cultivars being released in a number of market classes,” she said, “and a better understanding of the epidemiology and how these diseases spread, I think we’ll see improved management of these diseases.”