The sights and smells of freshly roasted green chile will soon permeate much of New Mexico. But before the state’s prized commodity ends up on dinner plates, producers must contend with several factors during the growing season, including combatting plant diseases.
Phillip Lujan, a plant pathologist for New Mexico State University’s Cooperative Extension Service, will lead a discussion on chile pepper diseases and disorders during the next Chile Chats lecture hosted by the NMSU Chile Pepper Institute.
Lujan’s talk will take place from 10 to 11:30 a.m. Wednesday, July 2, at NMSU’s Fabián García Research Center, 113 W. University Ave., which now houses the Chile Pepper Institute. The talk will also be available on Zoom. It is free and open to the public.
Lujan plans to discuss several commonly found chile pepper diseases and disorders that can cause excessive losses, both in quality and quantity in New Mexico. These diseases include wilt and root rot such as phytophthora root rot, verticillium wilt and rhizoctonia root rot; seedling diseases; leaf diseases; and viruses, among others.
“Attendees can expect to learn more about chile diseases and disorders that producers may face throughout the growing season,” Lujan said. “At the end of the discussion, attendees will really appreciate the work that it takes to get from seeds to the fruit that we all enjoy on our plates.”
In his Extension role, Lujan provides plant disease diagnostics for all New Mexico cropping and landscape systems through NMSU’s Plant Diagnostic Clinic. He also offers statewide programming focused on plant health and integrated pest management strategies, oversees various applied research projects and provides administrative oversight of the NMSU seed certification program.
“The Plant Diagnostic Clinic is a service provided to stakeholders in New Mexico and the surrounding areas,” he said, “and I will teach those who attend my talk how to sample and submit plant samples for disease identification.”
Lujan will also showcase various chile plants with potential diseases, which attendees can try to identify based off symptoms described in his presentation.
The Chile Pepper Institute’s Chile Alliance introduced the Chile Chats lecture series this spring. The series aims to unite chile producers, processors and enthusiasts through monthly gatherings designed to foster collaboration and knowledge sharing.
The Chile Pepper Institute hosts Chile Chats on the first Wednesday of every month. For an up-to-date schedule, visit https://cpi.nmsu.edu/programs/chile-chat.html. For more information, contact the Chile Pepper Institute at 575-646-3028 or cpi@nmsu.edu.
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CUTLINE: Phillip Lujan, a plant pathologist for New Mexico State University’s Cooperative Extension Service, will lead a discussion on chile pepper diseases and disorders July 2 at NMSU’s Fabián García Research Center. (NMSU photo Josh Bachman)