Module 3 - The Birth of Plant Pathology Flashcards
when did plant pathology become a discipline
after the Irish potato famine of 1845-52
how did people think diseases happened in the past
they thought living organisms could develop from non-living materials
what caused the irish potato famine
the late blight of potato
how many people starved and emigrated in the Irish potato famine
> 1million starved
1.5 million emigrated
possible reasons for potato late blight that people suggested
- gods punishment
- internal combustion ( a deficiency of vital energy in plants)
- electricity from trains (which were new)
- the little people (leprechauns)
what did Dr. Lindley think caused the late potato blight
believed that potatoes were full of water due to the wet weather which caused decay
who was reverend Dr. Berkeley
observed and drew the late potato blight fungus but did not prove it was the cause of the disease
germ theory
proved that infectious microorganisms were the cause rather than the result of disease
what was the first plant disease where the pathogen was identified
Phytophthora infestans (late potato blight)
epiphytotic
epidemic in plants
who proved that late blight was caused by a fungus-like organism
Aton de Bary
for a plant to become diseased there must be:
a host, a pathogen, contact between the 2, and a conductive environmental condition
what practice would have reduced the severity of the late potato blight in Ireland
diversifying the type of potatoes grown
what are favorable conditions for the late blight
cool (7C below normal) and wet
how did the late potato blight get to Ireland
by ship from the Americas as the potato itself
