Study identifies causes of potato dry rot in Colorado

Potato dry rot leads to significant losses during storage and postharvest handling, making management of this disease critically important for potato farmers. Colorado State University researchers in the San Luis Valley—one of the top regions for potato production in the U.S.—have identified multiple fungal species causing dry rot in Colorado. By analyzing structural and molecular features, plant pathologists at CSU's San Luis Valley Research Center have identified four Fusarium species associated with potato dry rot in the valley—including one that hadn't previously been found in the U.S.