Management of grape powdery mildew (Erysiphe necator) and other polycyclic diseases often relies on calendar‐based pesticide application schedules that assume the presence of inoculum. An inexpensive, loop‐mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay was designed to quickly detect airborne inoculum of E. necator to determine when to initiate a fungicide application programme. Field efficacy was tested in 2010 and 2011 in several commercial and research vineyards in the Willamette Valley of Oregon from pre‐bud break to véraison. In each vineyard, three impaction spore traps were placed adjacent to the trunk. One trap was maintained and used by the grower to conduct the LAMP assay (G‐LAMP) on‐site and the other two traps were used for laboratory‐conducted LAMP (L‐LAMP) and quantitative PCR assay (qPCR). Using the qPCR as a gold standard, L‐LAMP was comparable with qPCR in both years, and G‐LAMP was comparable to qPCR in 2011. Latent class analysis indicated that qPCR had a true positive proportion of 98% in 2010 and 89% in 2011 and true negative proportion of 96% in 2010 and 64% in 2011. An average of 3·3 fewer fungicide applications were used when they were initiated based on spore detection relative to the grower standard practice. There were no significant differences in berry or leaf incidence between plots with fungicides initiated at detection or grower standard practice plots, suggesting that growers using LAMP to initiate fungicide applications can use fewer fungicide applications to manage powdery mildew compared to standard practices.

Annual reductions in corn (Zea mays L.) yield caused by diseases were estimated by university Extension-affiliated plant pathologists in 26 corn-producing states in the United States and in Ontario, Canada, from 2016 through 2019. Estimated loss from each disease varied greatly by state or province and year. Gray leaf spot (caused by Cercospora zeae-maydis Tehon & E.Y. Daniels) caused the greatest estimated yield loss in parts of the northern United States and Ontario in all years except 2019, and Fusarium stalk rot (caused by Fusarium spp.) also greatly reduced yield. Tar spot (caused by Phyllachora maydis Maubl.), a relatively new disease in the United States, was estimated to cause substantial yield loss in 2018 and 2019 in several northern states. Gray leaf spot and southern rust (caused by Puccinia polysora Underw.) caused the most estimated yield losses in the southern United States. Unfavorable wet and delayed harvest conditions in 2018 resulted in an estimated 2.5 billion bushels (63.5 million metric tons) of grain contaminated with mycotoxins. The estimated mean economic loss due to reduced yield caused by corn diseases in the United States and Ontario from 2016 to 2019 was US$55.90 per acre (US$138.13 per hectare). Results from this survey provide scientists, corn breeders, government agencies, and educators with data to help inform and prioritize research, policy, and educational efforts in corn pathology and disease management.

Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] yield losses as a result of plant diseases were estimated by university and government plant pathologists in 29 soybean-producing states in the United States and in Ontario, Canada, from 2015 through 2019. In general, the estimated losses that resulted from each of 28 plant diseases or pathogens varied by state or province as well as year. Soybean cyst nematode (SCN) (Heterodera glycines Ichinohe) caused more than twice as much loss than any other disease during the survey period. Seedling diseases (caused by various pathogens), Sclerotinia stem rot (white mold) (caused by Sclerotinia sclerotiorum [Lib.] de Bary), and sudden death syndrome (caused by Fusarium virguliforme O'Donnell & T. Aoki) caused the next greatest yield losses, in descending order. Following SCN, the most damaging diseases in the northern U.S. and Ontario differed from those in the southern U.S. The estimated mean economic loss from all soybean diseases, averaged across the U.S. and Ontario, Canada was $45 U.S. dollars per acre ($111 per hectare). The outcome from the current survey will provide pertinent information regarding the important soybean diseases and their overall severity in the soybean crop and help guide future research and Extension efforts on managing soybean diseases.

Ralstonia solanacearum (Smith 1896) Yabuuchi et al. 1996 is ranked second among the top 10 most economically important plant pathogenic bacteria. The soil-borne bacterium affects over 200 plant species worldwide, including economically and nutritionally important crops, such as potato (Solanum tuberosum), tomato (Solanum lycopersicum), and bananas (Musa spp.). R. solanacearum is a species complex, meaning that the species is composed of strains with differential characteristics, including different metabolic requirements, centers of origin, host range, and ideal environmental conditions for infection. Its nature and the fact that it is a species complex can make R. solanacearum a difficult bacterium to work with, especially when lacking experience. Inappropriate isolation or storage of the pathogen can lead to inaccurate diagnostics or misleading conclusions. Thus, the objectives of this diagnostic guide are to provide adequate methods for isolation, storage, and identification and to discuss other relevant aspects related to this important plant pathogenic bacterium.

Peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) is susceptible to diseases caused by numerous soilborne pathogens. In the southwestern United States pathogens including Botrytis cinerea Pers.: Fr., Pythium spp., Rhizoctonia solani Kühn AG-4, Sclerotinia minor Jagger and Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) de Bary, Sclerotium rolfsii Sacc., and Verticillium dahliae Kleb. routinely affect peanut yield. This region has an arid climate and peanut development is generally later than in other peanut production areas, hence the time plants are exposed to pathogens is increased. These pathogens cause similar symptoms in the field; therefore, proper diagnosis is needed so that the appropriate management strategies can be implemented.

Industrial hemp (Cannabis sativa L.) has recently been reintroduced as an agricultural commodity in the United States, and, through state-led pilot programs, growers and researchers have been investigating production strategies. Diseases and disorders of industrial hemp in the United States are largely unknowns because record-keeping and taxonomy have improved dramatically in the last several decades. In 2016, North Carolina launched a pilot program to investigate industrial hemp, and diseases and abiotic disorders were surveyed in 2017 and 2018. Producers, consultants, and agricultural extension agents submitted samples to the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services Agronomic Services Division (n = 572) and the North Carolina Plant Disease and Insect Clinic (n = 117). Common field diseases found included Fusarium foliar and flower blights (Fusarium graminearum), Fusarium wilt (Fusarium oxysporum), and Helminthosporium leaf spot (Exserohilum rostratum). Greenhouse diseases were primarily caused by Pythium spp. and Botrytis cinerea. Common environmental disorders were attributed to excessive rainfall flooding roots and poor root development of transplanted clones.

Isolates of Cercospora sojina, causal agent of frogeye leaf spot of soybean (Glycine max), were collected across Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, and Virginia and were evaluated for quinone outside inhibitor (QoI) fungicide resistance. Collection of these isolates from these 14 states occurred between 2010 and 2017. QoI fungicide-resistant C. sojina isolates were detected in all 14 states surveyed and represent a total of 240 counties or parishes. In 2017, these 240 counties and parishes represented approximately 13% of the harvested soybean hectares in the United States. In light of this widespread occurrence of QoI fungicide-resistant C. sojina isolates, management of frogeye leaf spot should focus on integrated management practices such as planting resistant soybean cultivars, rotating with nonhost crops, and tilling to speed up decomposition of infested soybean residue. When foliar fungicide application is warranted, fungicide products that contain active ingredients from chemistry classes other than the QoI class should be applied for frogeye leaf spot management.

Plant pathogen detection systems have been useful tools to monitor inoculum presence and initiate management schedules. More recently, a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) assay was successfully designed for field use in the grape powdery mildew pathosystem; however, false negatives or false positives were prevalent in grower-conducted assays due to the difficulty in perceiving the magnesium pyrophosphate precipitate at low DNA concentrations. A quantitative LAMP (qLAMP) assay using a fluorescence resonance energy transfer-based probe was assessed by grape growers in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. Custom impaction spore samplers were placed at a research vineyard and six commercial vineyard locations, and were tested bi-weekly by the lab and by growers. Grower-conducted qLAMP assays used a beta-version of the Smart-DART handheld LAMP reaction devices (Diagenetix, Inc., Honolulu, HI, USA), connected to Android 4.4 enabled, Bluetooth-capable Nexus 7 tablets for output. Quantification by a quantitative PCR assay was assumed correct to compare the lab and grower qLAMP assay quantification. Growers were able to conduct and interpret qLAMP results; however, the Erysiphe necator inoculum quantification was unreliable using the beta-Smart-DART devices. The qLAMP assay developed was sensitive to one spore in early testing of the assay, but decreased to >20 spores by the end of the trial. The qLAMP assay is not likely a suitable management tool for grape powdery mildew due to losses in sensitivity and decreasing costs and portability for other, more reliable molecular tools.