Getting to the root of tree troubles


Plant pathologist Bill McPhee uses some sleuthing skills to help growers. By Judie Steeves


W


ith 38 years of experience as a plant pathologist involved in tree fruit production issues in the Okanagan Valley, Dr. Bill McPhee brings more than just his passion for helping the industry to the table. Over the years, while he worked at what is now the Summerland Research and Development Centre, or with what is now the Okanagan Tree Fruit Co- operative, McPhee has been helping growers determine what’s ailing trees or hampering fruit development — and he continues with that mission, as an independent consultant today: Canadian Agricultural Services. “You have to be a bit of a detective,” he explains. Since tree health begins in the roots, that’s the first place he looks for problems.


“If there are problems there, there’s no hope of growing a big tree with lots of apples. You need healthy feeder roots on the periphery,” he says.


In order to investigate, you can’t just stand and look at the tree, he explains. “You have to get down on your hands and knees and look at the roots.” In fact, he always carries a short- handled shovel in the trunk of his car to enable him to have a good look at the roots of trees.


He admits he’s a bit concerned that government is shirking its responsibility to the industry by no longer having extension staff available throughout the valley to consult with growers on field problems.


There’s a gap between research and growers, he believes, and that needs to be filled with information to keep growers up to date.


He is currently working on a project looking at the influence of climate change on


disease control patterns in the industry, and a monitoring tool for growers, connecting


horticultural and pathological data to a geographical mapping system using computer programming. Funding for the project is from the Farm Adaptation


JUDIE STEEVES


Bill McPhee is rarely, if ever, without his short-handled shovel.


Innovator Program, delivered by the B.C. Agriculture and Food Climate Action Initiative (CAI) through the Investment Agriculture Foundation (IAF) and the B.C. Agricultural Research and Development Corporation (ARDCorp).


It’s a federal/provincial program under the Growing Forward 2 program. The goal of the project is to detect patterns in three key disease areas: tree cankers, general fruit rot of stone fruits and soil diseases, all of which are endemic in Okanagan and Similkameen orchards.


With changing climate patterns and increased temperatures, disease behaviours will also change in such areas as increases in winter survival of pests, introduction of new pests and diseases and changing


ranges/distribution of pests and diseases.


This can result in increased damage to crops, impacts to crop health, increased management costs and complexity, as well as decreasing effectiveness of pest models used for pest management.


This project will coordinate weather


and disease data with a mapping software program allowing this relationship to be displayed geographically. This will visually convey information about disease distribution, its relative severity, its chemical resistance and its relationship to other factors such as microclimate, soils and pest management techniques. As information is gathered throughout the project, patterns will become clearer and more accurate.


Data will be made available to the general grower population through their farm computers, grower co- operatives and independent field monitors.


Broad recommendations will be summarized into reports and pest management recommendations. Project outcomes and


recommendations will also be directly shared with grower groups, at meetings for extension personnel, and through publications such as B.C. Fruit Grower magazine, where McPhee reports to growers on plant pathology issues. The first installment appears on the next page.


British Columbia FRUIT GROWER • Winter 2016-17 11


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24