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1. Late blight occurrence and LB severity by major production area in the country. What crops were affected (tomato, potato, others)? Disease sources (seed, cull piles, volunteer plants, soil)?

Data for 2002²

Potato late blight is the most important potato disease, but does not appear every year.

Blight was first observed in both susceptible and resistant varieties on 12 July. The weather conditions were drier and sunnier than in 2001.

2. LB impact (foliar damage, yield losses, tuber rot occurrences)?  

Data for 2002²

The amount of tuber blight that was observed at harvest was <0,7%. 

100% of the organic fields were infected with blight.

3. Fungicide use (amounts, types, etc.)?

Data for 2002²

The most important strategy consists of 2 sprays with a systemic fungicide (Tattoo) followed by two sprays with a contact fungicide (Dithane, Shirlan).

4. Other LB control measures (resistant cultivars, forecast systems, none)?

One major task in the European Network for development of an Integrated Control Strategy of potato late blight (EU.NET.ICP) was to discuss the possibilities of exportation and adaptation of existing late blight decision support systems (DSS) between countries to avoid duplication of efforts. Two Danish systems aimed at information and decision support for the control of potato late blight (PC-NegFry and Pl@nteInfo) are currently under validation and implementation in Latvia (Koppel et al, 2003; Hansen et al, 2002, Hansen, 2000).

Since February 21, 2003, Web-blight, an international web-based information and decision support system for potato late blight is bringing day-to-day information on the first occurrences and the development of late blight in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland (http://www.web-blight.net)

5. LB control effectiveness (fungicide or host resistance failures)?  

6. Pathogen strains (mating type, fungicide resistance, virulence factors, etc)? 

7. Disease risks and/or major needs?

8. Any publications on late blight in the country?  

Koppel M, Hansen J G, Lassen P, Turka I, Bimsteine G and Valskyte A. 2003. Implementation of the NegFry decision support system in Baltic countries in 1999–2002. pp 47–66 in: Westerdijk C E and Schepers H T A M (eds), Proceedings of the Seventh Workshop of an European Network for development of an Integrated Control Strategy of potato late blight, 2–6, October 2002 , Pozan, Poland, PPO-Special Report no. 9. Applied Plant Research BV, Wageningen, Netherlands.

Hansen J G, Lassen P, Koppel M, Valskyte A and Turka I. 2002. Operational use of Intenet based decision support for the control of potato late blight in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, 2001 with focus on: Late blight monitoring, forecasting and variety observation trials. pp 25–26 in Westerdijk C E and Schepers H T A M (eds), Proceedings of the Sixth Workshop of an European Network for development of an Integrated Control Strategy of potato late blight, 26–30, September 2001 , Edinburgh, Scotland, PPO-Special Report no. 8. Applied Plant Research BV, Wageningen, Netherlands.

Hansen J G. 2000. Validation and implementation of a Danish DSS for control of potato late blight in the Baltic countries. pp 117–130 in: Schepers H (ed), Proceedings of the Workshop on the European network for development of an Integrated Control Strategy of potato late blight, 29 September – 2 October 1999, Oostende, Belgium, PAV-Special Report no. 6. Applied Research for Arable Farming and Field Production of Vegetables, Lelystad, Netherlands.

Turka I. 1999. Potato late blight in Latvia and management of forecasting and warning. pp 172–177 in Schepers H and Bouma E (eds), Proceedings of the Workshop on the European network for development of an Integrated Control Strategy of potato late blight, 9–13 September 1998, Uppsala, Sweden, PAV-Report no. 5. Applied Research for Arable Farming and Field Production of Vegetables, Lelystad, Netherlands.

9. Is tuber blight an increasing problem?

Comments, additions and corrections are very welcome. Please contact us at GILB(at)cgiar.org

2] Schepers, H T A M. 2003. The development and control of Phytophthora infestans in Europe in 2002. pp 9–22 in: Westerdijk C E and Schepers H T A M (eds), Proceedings of the Seventh Workshop of an European Network for development of an Integrated Control Strategy of potato late blight, 2–6, October 2002 , Pozan, Poland, PPO-Special Report no. 9. Applied Plant Research BV, Wageningen, Netherlands. Information regarding the late blight epidemic in 2002 in Latvia provided by G. Bimsteine to H. Schepers.