Mitigating emerging and re-emerging pathogens and diseases of fruit and vegetable crops in a changing climate

Authors: MILLER, SALLY - The Ohio State University; Testen, Anna; JACOBS, JONATHAN - The Ohio State University; LEWIS IVEY, MELANIE - The Ohio State University

Submitted to: Phytopathology
Publication Type: Review Article
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/30/2023
Publication Date: 5/3/2024
Citation: Miller, S.A., Testen, A.L., Jacobs, J.M., Lewis Ivey, M.L. 2024. Mitigating emerging and re-emerging pathogens and diseases of fruit and vegetable crops in a changing climate. Phytopathology. 114(5). Article 917. https://doi.org/10.1094/phyto-10-23-0393-kc.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1094/phyto-10-23-0393-kc

Interpretive Summary: Climate change and associated weather changes impact diseases of fruit and vegetable crops adding an extra challenge for specialty crop growers. Higher temperatures, heavy rainfalls, drought, and increased carbon dioxide can increase the severity of plant diseases and cause new diseases to emerge in areas where they used to not be a problem. Plant pathologists can work closely with growers to help them reduce plant disease impacts due to climate change. Some practices that growers can use include climate-smart pest management, protected culture production, advanced plant disease diagnosis, and new methods of soilborne disease management. These practices along with frequent grower engagement will help fruit and vegetable growers continue to produce healthy, high yielding crops in a changing climate.

Technical Abstract: Fruit and vegetable crops are important sources of nutrition and income globally. Producing these high value crops requires significant investment of often scarce resources, and therefore the risks associated with climate change and accompanying disease pressures are especially important. Climate change influences the occurrence and pressure of plant diseases, enabling new pathogens to emerge and old enemies to re-emerge. Specific environmental changes attributed to climate change, particularly temperature fluctuations and intense rainfall events, alter fruit and vegetable disease incidence and severity greatly. In turn, fruit and vegetable microbiomes, and subsequently overall plant health, are also affected by climate change. Changing disease pressures cause growers and researchers to reassess disease management and climate change adaptation strategies. Approaches such as climate smart IPM, protected culture cultivation, and new soilborne disease management strategies are providing new disease management tools for specialty crops growers. Researchers and educators will need to work closely with growers to establish fruit and vegetable production systems that are resilient and responsive to changing climates.