In the past 10 years Downy Mildew (DM) has emerged as the No. 1 problem affecting cucumber, melon and squash crops in the Southeast, mid-Atlantic and parts of the Northeast and Midwest.In this workshop, Edmund Frost and Sapphyre Miria will review the basics of the Downy Mildew problem and disease cycle. They will look at the results of Twin Oaks Seed Farm’s trials. Hear about their ongoing efforts to find DM-resistant seed strains and to breed new DM-resistant varieties.
Edmund Frost and Sapphyre Miria live at Twin Oaks, a well-established intentional community in central Virginia. Edmund has managed Twin Oaks Seed Farm since 2008, growing dozens of varieties of organic vegetable seeds each year on five acres for several small seed companies. The farm has recently taken on some exciting new projects, including extensive variety trials (funded by a SARE grant for 2014), plant breeding for disease resistance, and a new cooperative direct marketing project called Common Wealth Seed Growers. Sapphyre Miria works with seed growing at Twin Oaks, focusing especially on Common Wealth Seed Growers and on variety trials. She also manages beekeeping and poultry at Twin Oaks.
Visit twinoaks.org/seedscommonwealthseeds.com for more information.