Zeng Lab at virginia tech
Our extension work involves applying our lab research to the field and providing growers with practical suggestions.
Scroll to read about our extension work regarding the three crops we specialize in.
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Tobacco
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Tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) is grown primarily for its leaves, where are harvested and cured before marketing.
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Foliar diseases are important constraints in tobacco production because lesions, necrosis, and other damage to harvestable leaves.
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Diseases caused by soilborne pathogens can also reduce tobacco yield by causing symptoms such as yellowing, wilting, and, in severe cases, plant death.
Corn
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From 2021 to 2023, corn foliar diseases were estimated to cause a total yield loss of 377,084 bushels in Virginia, demonstrating their impact on regional corn production.
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Important foliar diseases of corn in Virginia include gray leaf spot, northern corn leaf blight, southern corn leaf blight, common rust, or southern rust.
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Tar spot is an emerging foliar fungal disease in Virginia, first confirmed in the northern Shenandoah Valley in 2022.
Strawberry
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Strawberry production is affected by a range of soilborne and foliar diseases that can damage roots, crowns, leaves, and fruits. Diseases are reported as a major production concern among Virginia strawberry growers.
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In recent years, diseases caused by Neopestalotiopsis spp. have emerged as a major concern for strawberry growers in Virginia, leading to leaf spot, fruit rot, and crown rot.
