SPUD SMART ROUNDTABLE WEBINAR
Harvest Conditions and the Problems They Can Cause for Potato Storage
About The Webinar
Storing a potato crop isn’t a walk in the park and a poor harvest can make it even harder. Growers across Canada have experienced a wide range of harvest conditions over the last few years with the most notable having been the wet, cold conditions in Western Canada which gave growers harvest and storage problems. This webinar will look at how harvest conditions can affect your spuds in storage and what you can do about it.
During this webinar, you will learn:
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How harvest conditions can contribute to diseases in storage
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What you can do when storing your potatoes to keep them in the best condition
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What diseases your potatoes may face in storage
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How to handle potato storage diseases
Ron Howard, Plant pathologist with RJH Ag Research Solutions Ltd
Ron Howard is a plant pathologist with RJH Ag Research Solutions Ltd. He spent 39 years with Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development, where he was a research and extension plant pathologist at the Crop Diversification Centre South in Brooks. Ron carried out diagnostic, surveillance, research and extension work on potato diseases for most of his career. His work on storage diseases included evaluating post-harvest fungicides for efficacy, screening potato varieties for resistance, and determining the effectiveness of different methods for cleaning and disinfecting potato storages and equipment contaminated with bacterial and fungal pathogens. After retirement from the Alberta Government in 2014 and through his company, Ron has remained involved in a variety of collaborative research, extension and crop disease surveillance projects.
Steven Johnson, crops specialist and extension professor at the University of Maine
Steven B. Johnson is an extension professor and extension potato specialist with the University of Maine where he has been employed for the past 32 years. Steve has a Ph.D. from the University of Florida, a master’s degree from the University of Maine at Orono, and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, all in plant pathology. His responsibilities in Maine are potato diseases with potato late blight occupying a major portion of his time. When the crop is not in the field, potato storage disorders are a focus of his efforts.