Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** the increasing demand for organic…

Awards issued prior to january 20, 2025, were funded under previous administrations and may not reflect the priorities and policies of the current administration.** the increasing demand for organic foods in the US is creating an opportunity for conventional vegetable growers to transition to organic production. However, pests and diseases are major barriers for transitioning growers since chemical pesticides are no longer options for pest management on transitioning and organic farms. Root-knot nematodes (RKN; meloidogyne SPP.) are among the critical yield-limiting pests of conventional and organic vegetable production in the US and around the world. When RKN populations reach damaging levels in fields, effective management approaches become imperative. However, as RKN continues to spread under the changing climate and emerging virulent RKN populations overcome host resistance, lack of effective methods for managing RKN post a significant barrier during transition to organic vegetable farming. This project focuses on research and extension activities to explore suppressive soils as a resource for growers to manage RKN in organic vegetable farming by (1) identifying suppressive soils against RKN at organic vegetable farms in indiana and kentucky and assessing the impacts of soil management practices on suppression via closely working with growers; (2) investigating microbial communities of representative suppressive soils to identify groups of microbes associated with RKN-suppressiveness. The microbes identified may serve as bioindicators of RKN suppressiveness of soils; (3) developing grower-friendly procedures to create RKN-suppressive soils by scaling up the identified suppressive soils or through DE novo methods; (4) developing a new method for managing RKN in organic vegetable farming by transplantation with suppressive soils; (5) creating a knowledge-generating and sharing platform as a hub to guide growers for effective RKN management. With the collaborations between purdue university, university of kentucky, growers, conservation groups, organic industry, and other stakeholders, the multidisciplinary team aims to provide vital assistance to transitioning and organic vegetable growers with effective RKN management strategies and practices to facilitate smooth transition and successful organic vegetable production.