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Welcome to the McGrath lab!

till strip

Zone builder preparing reduce-till strips for pumpkins.

With a program goal of improving management of diseases affecting fresh market vegetable crops on Long Island, the ‘lab’ exists mostly outdoors in both research and commercial production fields.  Organic and conventional production systems are being examined. Controlled laboratory and greenhouse conditions are used for investigating some aspects of pathogen biology as well as disease management. Reduced-tillage, compost amendments, living mulches, and other practices for improving soil health are being examined for their impact on plant diseases.  Ambient ozone reaches concentrations that cause acute foliar injury to many crops each summer on Long Island, therefore impact of this air pollutant on plant productivity is being examined. This program is located at the Long Island Horticultural Research & Extension Center (LIHREC), which is in the most important agricultural county in NY based on value of production.

More information on research

Premature leaf senescence due to ozone in pumpkin on 9/9/07.


Tomatoes grown no-till in rye-vetch mulch for evaluating organic disease control products

ozone injury
ozone injury Ozone injury in pumpkin on 8/14/07