Project Overview

Reports

Commodities

• Vegetables: sweet potatoes

Target Pests

• Target Pests: Sweetpotato viruses

Practices

• Pest Management: cultural control, prevention

• Sustainable Communities: local and regional food systems, sustainability measures

Recent studies have shown that decreased local food production and increased food and nutrition security challenges in Micronesia Pacific Island countries and territories are of great concern. Sweetpotato is an important staple playing a significant role in the economy and culture of Micronesia. It is regarded as a functional food crop to prevent non-communicable diseases (NCDs) which are critical health issues in the Pacific Island countries. Sweetpotato has great possibilities to enhance food and nutrition security in the Pacific Islands because of its flexibility in the cropping schedule, the short cropping season, less labor intensiveness, and a requirement for low soil nutrients.  Despite great possibilities, the yield and quality of sweetpotato are low in Micronesia. Variety degeneration by viruses and the lack of new quality seed plants is a major constraint to improving sweetpotato production. Providing virus-tested clean seed plants to subsistence farmers is a means of Preventive Integrated Pest Management (IPM) to promote local agricultural production in the insular Pacific Islands.

The research project will carry out virus indexing, propagation, and distribution of virus-tested quality seed plants of in vitro sweetpotato accessions conserved at the laboratory of Horticulture, University of Guam to farmers in Guam and collaborating insular institutions.  The project will develop sweetpotato virus indexing and in vitro clean seed plant production guidelines for researchers and extension personnel in the Pacific. These research objectives will be accomplished through on-lab trials, a regional network, and a workshop. Results will improve knowledge of the importance of clean seed plants for sustainable production of vegetatively propagated sweetpotato. The project will provide initiatives for clean sweetpotato seed plant production and will be accessible to subsistence farmers in the geographically isolated underserved Pacific Islands through the local Land grant institutions.

Creating this regional partnership between stakeholders, researchers, and extension personnel will benefit Guam and other insular institutions by facilitating access to popular varieties such as Okinawan and advanced sweetpotato varieties from USDA-ARS that show resistance to biotic stress such as stronger weed competition capacity will benefit the Pacific region. The project will also create a network for information sharing between insular institutions to speed up the process of production and distribution of clean seed plants to improve sustainable and efficient local crop production for our Western Pacific climate. Educational opportunities facilitated together with researchers and extension educators will bring research findings and farmer innovation to the broader western Washington area. Education and outreach will include an on-lab workshop, publication of fact sheets, and presentation of results at local conferences.

Objectives

1. Index systemic pathogens in sweetpotato  in vitro germplasm accessions in Guam
2. Regenerate pathogen-free germplasm for selected sweet potato varieties
3. Distribute pathogen-free germplasm of selected sweet potato varieties to farmers in Guam and other insular land grant institutions
4. Provide results of research work to extension personnel, researchers, and the local community

Objective 1. Index systemic pathogens of in vitro sweetpotato germplasm accessions in Guam

Virus indexing of in vitro sweetpotato germplasm accessions will be conducted at the Laboratory of Horticulture, University of Guam using nucleic acid assays of PCR and RT-PCR methods. The presence and absence of virus diseases will be recorded. We already have 3 virus-tested accessions in vitro and will propagate those for distribution. Alternatively, virus-tested in vitro plants of the desired cultivars with improved traits showing resistance to abiotic and biotic stresses that can benefit the Micronesia region will be provided by Dr. Phillip Wadl, Research Geneticist, USDA-ARS, U.S. Vegetable Laboratory for propagation and distribution to collaborating insular research and extension institutions.

Objective 2. Regenerate pathogen-free germplasm for selected sweetpotato varieties

Five clean virus-indexed sweetpotato accessions will be propagated in vitro by using nodal explants with different plant growth regulator combinations of cytokinins and auxins at the Laboratory of Horticulture, University of Guam.  Subculture will be done repeatedly until a minimum of 50 plants for each accession is achieved.

Objective 3. Distribute pathogen-free germplasm of selected sweet potato varieties to producers in Guam and other insular land grant institutions

In vitro virus-indexed germplasm for selected 5 sweet potato varieties will be distributed to two local producers in Guam, Palau Community College, Cooperative Research and Extension (PCC-CRE) where the tissue culture laboratory for root crop germplasm conservation is ongoing, and Kosrae and Yap, the College of Micronesia, Federated States of Micronesia (COM-FSM). Further multiplication and distribution of selected germplasm to the communities in need will be carried out at the University of Guam, the Republic of Palau, and the Federated States of Micronesia. The plants will be used for the local food security program by preventive IPM.

Objective 4. Provide results of research work to researchers/extension personnel, and the local community

The research findings will be disseminated through a one-day workshop/training to collaborating local producers, researchers/extension personnel, local technical publications, and oral and poster presentations at professional conferences.