Plant Pathology and Microbiology

March 28, 2007
Texas Cooperative Extension Hires New Plant Pathologist 
AMARILLO – Dr. Ron French, who began his job as Texas Cooperative Extension plant pathologist on March 21, looked forward to taking his place among Extension personnel in Amarillo.

January 23, 2007
Grain Industry Plays Key Role in Aflatoxin Containment 
AMARILLO – The grain industry continues to encounter mycotoxins in Texas feed-grade corn, making grain elevators among the first line of defense, said Dr. Tim Herrman, director of the Office of the State Chemist at Texas A&M University.

August 18, 2006
Vega’s Research Focuses on Preventing Foodborne Illnesses 
COLLEGE STATION – Fruits and vegetables can play a vital role in maintaining health. Unfortunately they can also play a part in some uncomfortable illnesses, said a recent doctoral graduate from Texas A&M University.

July 10, 2006
Plant Pathologist Joins Lubbock Center Staff 
LUBBOCK – South Plains cotton and peanut producers have a new ally in their fight against yield-robbing plant diseases.

July 07, 2006
Former Soviet Union Republic Looks to Texas Researcher for Answers 
AMARILLO – Dr. Charlie Rush is using knowledge gained in the sugar beet fields of the Panhandle to help the Republic of Azerbaijan, formerly a part of the Soviet Union, build economic stability.

June 06, 2006
More Than Drought Affecting Wheat Yields 
AMARILLO – Wheat producers have more than the drought cutting into their yields this year, said two Texas Agricultural Experiment Station researchers.

February 28, 2006
Disease Damages Wheat Roots, Thwarts Water Uptake 
AMARILLO – Alterations in irrigation schedules may be needed when wheat streak mosaic infection is suspected in winter wheat crops, according to a Texas Agricultural Experiment Station researcher in Amarillo.

February 23, 2006
Asian Soybean Rust Confirmed in Weslaco 
WESLACO – Asian soybean rust- a potentially serious fungus of soybean crops- has now been found in an area of Texas where prevailing winds could help spread the disease.

January 24, 2006
Aflatoxin Awareness Helps Prevent Future Problems 
AMARILLO – The livestock feeding industry in the High Plains is on the lookout for high aflatoxin concentrations in imported grain, according to a local plant pathologist.

December 15, 2005
Take-all Root Rot Update Featured at Upcoming East Texas Turf Grass Conference 
OVERTON – Probably because of the drought, it's been a particularly bad year for take-all root rot on home lawns, according to a Texas Cooperative Extension expert.

November 11, 2005
Beach Bum Wannabe Turned DNA Researcher Rides Waves of Success 
COLLEGE STATION – Marty Dickman left Long Island, N.Y., after high school with no thoughts of college. Hawaii was his goal. He and a buddy sought warm waves, sandy surf, and the beach-bum life.

September 27, 2005
New House will be a Classroom for Builders, Homeowners 
MCALLEN - The green-colored studs in the frame of a home under construction in north McAllen give the first hint that this is no ordinary house. Among the many that go up daily in this booming section of the country, this home is unique.

September 21, 2005
Researchers Hope Cotton Screening Will Stop Bacterial Blight In Its Tracks 
LUBBOCK – If an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure, what is a pound or a ton of prevention worth? For High Plains cotton producers, the answer could be an entire field or an entire crop when bacterial blight rears its ugly head.

August 25, 2005
Researchers Examining Virus in Winter Garden Onions 
COLLEGE STATION - Six samples taken in three Winter Garden fields in Southwest Texas late last spring indicate a virus may have become a significant problem in onions.

August 11, 2005
Soybean Rust Fears Premature in Texas 
AMARILLO – Diseases resembling Asian soybean rust have caused concerns among Panhandle producers in recent weeks.

August 09, 2005
Reclaimed Wastewater: An Idea that Could Soak in 
EL PASO – As water becomes ever more scarce, quenching thirsty crops with wastewater may be OK if done right, researchers here say.

July 15, 2005
Plant Disease Importation Could Spell Sudden Death for Nursery Industry 
OVERTON – As the new regional Texas Cooperative Extension plant pathologist, Dr. Karl Steddom admits he has a lot to learn about plant diseases in East Texas.

July 07, 2005
High Plains Vegetable Field Day and Farm Tour set for July 28 
LUBBOCK – Those interested in vegetable production should mark July 28 on their calendars. That's the date for the third annual High Plains Vegetable Field Day and Farm Tour at the Texas A&M University System Agricultural Research and Extension Center here.

June 13, 2005
New Rules Regulate Mold Removal Businesses 
WESLACO – New state laws require contractors to have training, insurance and certification to assess and remove mold.

May 17, 2005
Sugar Beet Virus Mutation Requires Texas Touch 
AMARILLO – The only sugar beets growing in Texas are in the laboratory. But those few plants are getting to the root of problems throughout the sugar beet industry.

May 13, 2005
Experiment Station Researchers to Explore Genome of Disease-Fighting Fungus 
COLLEGE STATION – A team of Texas Agricultural Experiment Station scientists will soon begin genome sequencing a disease-fighting fungus used to protect crops, which has implications for both agriculture and the pharmaceutical industry.

April 25, 2005
Better Understanding the Most Destructive Disease of Rice 
COLLEGE STATION - Texas A&M University scientists are looking for ways to deal with a plant pathogen that destroys enough rice every year to feed 60 million people. The pathogen, rice blast, is so clever in it's its genetic design that it can mutate faster than breeders can develop resistant varieties.

September 17, 2004
Weslaco Scientist Zeros In On Important Citrus Gene 
WESLACO – After years of high-tech lab work, a scientist in South Texas is inching closer to a gene in the DNA of a citrus relative that will change the way citrus is produced.

August 25, 2004
Remote Sensing Technology Spots Aphid Stressed Wheat 
BUSHLAND – Dr. Mustafa Mirik, assistant research scientist with Texas Agricultural Experiment Station, and a team of collaborators, are looking at plant damage and stress in wheat. Their current work deals with damage caused by aphids. In the future, the team plans to include other stress factors, such as drought and disease.

June 25, 2004
College Mold Class Offered On The Internet 
WESLACO -- Biology and engineering students will meet on the Internet this fall to take a unique college-level course about mold and how it affects buildings and public health.

April 28, 2004
Plant Disease Under The Homeland Security Microscope 
AMARILLO -- Since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, questions on plant diseases have added significance, said Dr. Charles Rush, plant pathologist with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station at Amarillo.

March 12, 2004
More Studies Needed In Drug, Grapefruit Juice Interaction 
WESLACO - Is it safe to take prescription drugs with a glass of grapefruit juice? The bottom line, according to a citrus scientist in South Texas, is that much more research needs to be done before that question can be answered.

November 21, 2003
Valley Citrus Pickers Avoiding Wet Fruit 
WESLACO -- One would be hard pressed to find anybody in agriculture in South Texas who isn't thankful for the recent heavy rains. The resulting deep soil moisture will bode well for all producers in the Lower Rio Grande Valley well into 2004.

November 19, 2003
Diversity: What People, Grain Sorghum Have In Common 
COLLEGE STATION – Diverse. To society, the word means racial, ethnic and cultural differences. To scientists interested in biological diversity, the meaning is no different.

July 18, 2003
South Plains Hosts Six Peanut Field Days, July 22-24 
LUBBOCK – Farmers can get a hands-on look at peanut production on the South Plains during a series of peanut farm and education tours set for July 22-24.

June 27, 2003
Lab Technician Awarded Grant For Graduate Research 
AMARILLO - Esther Villanueva of Amarillo, a Texas Agricultural Experiment Station plant pathology research lab technician and graduate student at West Texas A&M University, has been awarded the school's Kilgore Graduate Research grant to support her thesis research through the summer.

May 26, 2003
Mold Recurrence A Growing Problem In Rio Grande Valley Homes 
WESLACO -- He's seen it too many times: contractors who do a poor job of removing mold from homes. Instead of properly removing it, some even paint over the mold to mask it.

April 03, 2003
Plant Disease Experts Meeting At South Padre April 5-10 
WESLACO – Plant disease experts from throughout the world will converge on South Padre Island to attend the Pan American Plant Disease Conference at the Radisson Resort Hotel. The conference begins Saturday and ends April 10.

March 21, 2003
Researcher: Fine Tuning Biotechnology Like Listening To Orchestra 
COLLEGE STATION – Progress in the field of genomics was music to the ears of researchers and students who attended "The Changing Face of Agriculture" lecture Thursday, which marked the Texas A&M University College of Agriculture and Life Sciences 125th anniversary.

February 07, 2003
Citrus Course Offered In Weslaco 
WESLACO -- Designed for everybody from the hobbyist to large producers, a comprehensive, three-month course on citrus and citrus production begins Feb. 13 at the Texas A&M-Kingsville Citrus Center in Weslaco in the Lower Rio Grande Valley and ends April 24.

February 07, 2003
Ecological Integration Symposium Set For College Station 
COLLEGE STATION – The fourth annual Ecological Integration Symposium will be Feb. 22 at the George Bush Presidential Conference Center at Texas A&M University here. Sessions, which are free and open to the public, will begin at 8 a.m.

December 24, 2002
Mold Control In Schools Should Be Cheap, Easy 
WESLACO -- Dr. Mani Skaria cringes when he reads newspaper accounts of school districts involved in mold-related lawsuits. He believes mold and the litigation that follows can be easily prevented with a little know-how. He also believes some "professionals" hired to detect mold are wasting valuable time and money.

November 27, 2002
18th Panhandle Farm Management Symposium Dec. 5 
AMARILLO--Producers planning on attending the Panhandle Farm Management Symposium on Dec. 5 will hear updates in pesticide regulations, bindweed control and wheat insect issues.

October 11, 2002
Use Caution When Feeding Corn To Wildlife 
COLLEGE STATION – Deer hunters and wildlife enthusiasts are urged to use caution this fall when feeding corn to wildlife, paying special attention to product labeling. Failing to do so could pose a potential health threat to Texas wildlife.

March 25, 2002
Weslaco Ag Scientist Honored For Early Successes 
WESLACO - A South Texas scientist with the Texas Agricultural Experiment Station is being honored for the many successes he's achieved in only the first decade of his career.

March 14, 2002
Landscape Plant Health Conferences Set For Amarillo, Lubbock 
LUBBOCK – West Texans can learn more about landscape plant health and waterwise irrigation strategies at a landscape conference slated at two locations this month, said a Texas Cooperative Extension plant pathologist.

February 26, 2002
Southwest Panhandle Cotton Conference March 8 
HEREFORD – Cotton production information and marketing opportunities top the agenda at the Southwest Panhandle Cotton Conference on March 8 at the Community Center on Park Avenue in Hereford.

February 19, 2002
Extension Summer Internships Available In Integrated Pest Management 
COLLEGE STATION -- Texas Cooperative Extension is seeking the state's top agriculture students for summer internships in Integrated Pest Management (IPM).

November 27, 2001
Mold Classes To Be Offered Dec. 17-21 
WESLACO - When Dr. Mani Skaria moved to South Texas from Washington State, he had no idea he was moving into what he now calls the mold capital of the world.

November 26, 2001
Weslaco Scientist Lands $1.4 Million In National Grants 
WESLACO - A citrus researcher in the Lower Rio Grande Valley has received two USDA grants totaling $1.4 million. One will fund research into how citrus helps prevent cancer; the other will establish programs to encourage minority youth to study agriculture and food science.

Nation's First Field Test of Transgenic Citrus Trees Planted in Weslaco
- April 18 2000 -

Virus-Free Citrus Budwood Available
- April 11 2000 -

Reducing Aflatoxin Production in Crops, Focus of Research
- April 06 2000 -

Plant Pathologist Receives Scientific Excellence Award
- March 08 2000 -

New Budding System Could Change the Fruit Industry
- November 25 1999 -

Mysterious Markings Seen on Valley Oranges
- September 27, 1999 -

Scientist Earns Honors for Career Accomplishment
- July 01, 1998 -

Amarillo Scientist Earns Honors for Career Accomplishments
- June 22, 1998 -

Crisis Exemption Granted Sorghum Fungicide
- August 07, 1997 -

New Fact Sheets Discuss Identification of Sorghum Ergot
- July 21, 1997 -

Rains Both Good, Bad for Valley Crops
- June 18, 1997 -

Van Alfen Honored with National Award Chestnut Blight Work
- June 16, 1997 -

Molecular Science Helping Today's Agricultural Producer
- June 06, 1997 -

Researchers Find Key to Suppression of Rice Blast
- May 17, 1997 -

Researchers, Policy Makers Try to Catch Up with Sorghum Fungus
- April 02, 1997 -

Researchers Find Pathway for Nitrogen Fixation in Plants
- January 22, 1997 -

Ice Storm May Lead to Oak Wilt Disease on Texas Trees
- January 10, 1997 -

Scientists Hope to Dry Up Deadly Parasite's Chances
- November 12, 1996 -

Tests Rule Out Karnal Bunt Fungus in Texas Wheat
- October 6, 1996 -

Aflatoxin Research Shows Promise
- September 5, 1996 -

Bacterial Diseases Threatening Texas Wine Grape Industry
- Aug. 12, 1996 -

Sludge Study Settles on No Airborne Pathogens--
- February 16, 1996 -

Texas Spends Big Bucks to Stop Oak Wilt Disease
- May 27, 1994 -