Less than 2 miles marks the distance between two plant laboratories that’ve contributed to an important partnership between Michigan State University and the Michigan Department of Agriculture and Rural Development (MDARD).
MSU Plant and Pest Diagnostics and MDARD’s Plant Pathology Laboratory (PPL) work together to address some of the most pestilent plant problems that plague Michigan farmers.
Over 15 years ago, Ray Hammerschmidt, faculty coordinator of MSU Plant and Pest Diagnostics and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences, invited Elizabeth Dorman, manager of MDARD’s PPL, to discuss a possible collaboration involving the state and university labs while attending the North Central Plant Diagnostic Network’s meeting in Chicago.
The regional network, part of the greater National Plant Diagnostic Network, is an association of plant diagnostic labs from six Great Lakes states, in addition to those from Iowa and Missouri. MSU serves as the primary hub and provides leadership for the region.
Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin — in addition to Michigan — invited their state department diagnostic labs to attend the meeting with their state’s land-grant university labs.
“This was the first time our region’s state department diagnostic labs and university labs were brought together,” Dorman said. “The meeting was designed to work on strengthening the partnership between the state and university labs.”
Since then, MSU Plant and Pest Diagnostics and MDARD’s PPL have teamed up not only to identify and formulate management strategies for some of the state’s most troubling plant concerns, but also to share expertise and protocols with each other.
“The close working relationship between our two laboratories is yet another example of the collaborative, mission-driven approach common in Michigan agriculture,” said Dr. Tim Boring, MDARD Director. “For MDARD, this cooperation is crucial for us to certify export-bound commodities and for early detection of invasive species. The ongoing partnership is important not just for these activities, but for the standard demonstrated on a daily basis of delivering for our stakeholders.”
MSU Plant and Pest Diagnostics was established in 1999 with funding support from Project GREEEN, Michigan’s plant initiative based at MSU and composed of Michigan’s Plant Coalition, MDARD, MSU AgBioResearch and MSU Extension. The lab uses a multidisciplinary approach to diagnose which pathogens, pests, nematodes, weeds and abiotic issues are affecting its clients, including growers, homeowners, industry professionals, campus specialists and regulatory agencies. From there, the lab’s dedicated specialists provide recommendations for how to control the issue.
MDARD’s PPL also tests plant samples to discover which plant pathogens and pests are at play, but its priorities lie more in facilitating the inspection of Michigan plant products for certification and trade, as well as safeguarding Michigan plant industries through regulatory action. When the lab doesn’t have the testing standards or expertise to perform a specific test, Dorman and her staff work with MSU’s lab to get results.
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