2026 Washington & Oregon Potato Conference General Schedule

Continental Breakfast – Three Rivers Convention Center, Kennewick

Potato Sustainability Alliance Updates, John Mesko, Potato Sustainability Alliance

Federal and International Trade Update for the Potato, Kam Quarles, National Potato Council

Washington State Potato Commission Update, Chris Voigt, Executive Director, Washington State Potato Commission

Oregon Potato Commission Update, Gary Roth, Executive Director, Oregon Potato Commission

Potatoes USA Update, Blair Richardson, Potatoes USA

Using Soil Aggregates as a Soil Management Fingerprint in Potato Fields, Carlos Bonilla, Oregon State University, Director of HAREC, Hermiston, OR

What Respiration Rates Reveal About Potato Metabolism and Postharvest Quality, Gustavo Teixeira, University of Idaho, Kimberly

Field Performance Comparison of Mobile Drip vs. Conventional Irrigation in Potato, Jacob Meeuwsen, Washington State University

Early Springs and Delayed Autumns: Capitalizing on Longer Potato Growing Seasons, Mark Pavek, Zach Holden, Jake Meeuwsen, Jake Blauer, Rudy Garza, Vito Cantu, Washington State University, Pullman

Hosted Potato Bar, Trade Show, Convention Center

Beating the Heat: Potato Stress, Yield, and Quality – What We’ve Learned to Date, Jacob Blauer, Washington State University, Pullman

Can We Increase Potato Yield and Tolerance to Stress by Optimizing Vitamins’ Use Efficiency? Aymeric Goyer, Oregon State University, Corvallis

Dormant (Direct) Tuber Testing: Early Detection of Tuber Necrotic Viruses in Seed Potatoes, Aritra Roy Choudhury, Montana State Seed Certification, Montana State University

A Systems-Based Strategy for Management of PLRV and its Aphid Vectors in Potato Production, Michelle Heck, UDSA-ARS and Cornell University, Ithica New York

Insecticides for Aphid Vectored Virus Transmission, Gina Angelella, USDA-ARS Prosser

Management of Disease through Seed Potato Production and Certification, Amy Charkowski, Colorado State University

Recent Observations of Potato Diseases and Their Potential Sources, Ken Frost, Oregon State University, Hermiston

Weed Control in Potatoes: Lessons learned and a career retrospective, Joel Felix, Oregon State University, Malheur Experiment Station

Continental Breakfast – Three Rivers Convention Center, Kennewick

Management of Potato Black Dot, Chakradhar Mattupalli, Washington State University, Mount Vernon

Powdery Scab – Lessons and Observations from the Field, Brian Charlton, Oregon State University, Klamath Falls

Powdery Scab Disease Management, Amy Charkowski, Colorado State University

Updates from the Washington Soil Health Initiative, Chris Benedict and Deirdre LaHue, Washington State University Mount Vernon and Whatcom County

Private Sector Efficiency for the Public Potato Breeding: Insights from Comparison of Domestic and Private European Breeding Programs, Max Feldman, USDA-ARS Prosser

Heat Stress and Safe Applicator Practices, Doug Hartfield, L&I

Variable Rate Irrigation of Potatoes, Elisa Flint, Utah State University

Soil Property Effects on Soilborne Disease and Tuber Yield, Amber Moore, Oregon State University, Corvallis

All Models are Wrong, but Some are Useful: Simple Models Best Inform Pest Management, Dave Crowder, Washington State University, Pullman

Hosted Luncheon, Convention Center

Potato Pest Trends and Alerts, Carrie H. Wohleb, Washington State University Extension

Mitigating Metam - Alternatives to Metam Fumigation for Verticillium Wilt Management, Jeff Miller, Miller Research, Rupert, Idaho

The Effects of Solanum sisymbriifoliumon the Columbia Root-knot Nematode Meloidogyne chitwoodi, Koy Chandler, PhD Candidate, Washington State University

Up, Down, and All Around: Exploring the Distribution and Movement of Nematodes in Potato Fields, Inga Zasada

Developing Nematode Resistant Varieties: Are new genetic and genomic tools improving our efficiency?, Vidyasagar (Sagar) Sathuvalli Rajakalyan, Oregon State University, Hermiston

Identifying Important Natural Enemies for Potato Pests, Bonnie Ohler, WSU Extension/USDA-ARS, Wapato

What’s New in Controlling Insects and Nematodes in Pacific Northwest Potatoes, Alan Schreiber, Agriculture Development Group, Inc., Eltopia, WA

Evaluating Alternatives to Neonicotinoid Insecticides in Potato Production: Lessons Learned to Date, Tim Waters, Washington State University