A potato sample with blackleg symptoms received late last week in the OSU Vegetable Pathology lab was confirmed to be caused by Dickeya dianthicola. This is the first report of the more aggressive type of blackleg in Ohio. In hot weather, the disease can cause significant losses in potatoes. Growers who find blackleg symptoms in potatoes are welcome to submit a sample to the OSU Vegetable Pathology Lab (scroll below to June 29 post for sample submission instructions).
There are no strategies to manage blackleg once it appears in production fields. The disease must be controlled at the seed production stage. For more information, see Dr. Meg McGrath’s article from Cornell University