Agricultural Consulting and Testing Services
A.C.T.S.
Inc
17434
Noble Avenue
Carroll, Iowa 51401
Phone and FAX 712-792-3966
Email
ralph@phytopath.com
A.C.T.S.
has a laboratory and greenhouse facility specifically designed for work with
plant diseases. The greenhouse has a controlled environment with artificial
lighting. Our laboratory is equipped with transfer hoods, microscopic equipment,
a light bank for growing out cultures, and sieving equipment for working with
nematodes. The facilities are located in rural Carroll County. Appropriate sites
for field evaluations are nearby.
A.C.T.S. staff includes two plant pathologists:
Ralph
von Qualen earned his M.S. and Ph.D. degrees in plant pathology from Purdue
University. He has worked in field, laboratory and greenhouse evaluations of
fungal and nematode diseases in soybeans and corn.
Sharon
von Qualen earned her B.Sc. in plant pathology from Iowa State University and
her M.S. degree from Purdue University and has also worked in field, laboratory
and greenhouse evaluations of plants for fungal disease resistance.
Statement
of confidentiality:
Results
of these studies shall be kept in confidence.
Your
results:
Your
results will be emailed back to you in a Microsoft Excel Worksheet for you to
further manage.
Your
bill:
We
bill after the test is successfully completed.
Screening for resistance to Phytophthora:
We inoculate plants with
the particular Phytophthora sojae race in the greenhouse. The
respective disease reaction will be recorded seven days later. Standard soybean
varieties with known reactions to selected races are included in the test.
The exact races to be used will be
determined with the client – depending on the Rps genes thought to be present.
We get consistent results with races 1,7, 4, 20
and 25.
Four replications with tens plants per variety are sown and inoculated for each
race. The final report will include a summary indicating the type of resistance
indicated by these tests
(i.e., Rps 1c,
1k, 3 or 8
present)
and whether segregation may still be occurring.
Cost for this test will be $28.00 per race per variety entered.
Screening
for tolerance to Phytophthora:
Plants
are sown into vermiculite over a layer of P. sojae race 25. Three weeks
after planting plant roots are evaluated and rated. Plants will be compared
in their reaction to soybean varieties of known partial resistance or tolerance.
We use four replications twelve
plants each in our standard test. Results are consistent with other reports.
Cost for this test will be $30.00 per variety entered.
Screening
for resistance to Soybean Cyst Nematode:
Soybeans will be grown in soil uniformly
infested with Races 3, 5 or 14 of the Soybean Cyst Nematode Heterodera
glycines. Once female cysts are present on the roots (30 days) the number of
cysts on plant roots will be counted and compared to the number of cysts on
susceptible check ( Cosroy 79, Williams 82 or Lee). We grow four replications
for each entry and include the standard variety in each replication. Results
have been consistent on check varieties.
Cost for this test will be $21.00
per race per variety entered or $4.50
per replication per entry if more than four replications are desired.
Screening
for resistance to Brown Stem Rot:
Single plants are grown in cones and
Phialophora gregata is injected into the base of 2-week-old plants. After five
weeks, the progress of the fungus up the stem is determined by cutting the stem
into one inch segments and incubating these sections on green bean agar. We
record what portion of the stem has been colonized. We use Phialophora gregata
genotype ‘A’ and a set of checks with known reactions. Girma Tabor
et al describe this technique their
article “Resistance to Phialophora gregata is expressed in the stems of
resistant soybeans.” Plant Disease 87: 970-976.
Cost for this test is $6.75 per
replication. 10 replications are recommended.
Screening
for resistance to White mold
We
inoculate V5 plants by cutting the terminal bud and placing a pipette tip with
Sclerotinia culture on that tip. We measure the progress of the lesion as it
grows down the plant. Daily evaluations for ten days yield good correlation
with field resistance in standard varieties. The advantage of this technique
is that plants are exposed to inoculum for the same length of time no matter
what their maturity group. Because we are measuring tolerance and not true
resistance results from this test are variable and we recommend 10
replications.
Cost for this test is
$5.50 per replication.
10 replications are
recommended.