From the Preface:

In the remarkably brief period of 4 centuries the potato has emerged from its native home in the Andean region of South America, and become one of the four major food crops of the world, along with rice, wheat, and maize. This dramatic increase in the importance of the potato was due primarily to its rapid development as a basic food crop in many European countries, from where it has spread throughout the world.

During the past 40 years some significant trends have developed in world potato production. In the industrialized countries the area planted has slowly declined, but higher productivity has resulted in relatively stable total annual production. In the developing countries, the area planted to potatoes has increase considerable and productivity has also risen steadily. Today these developing countries produce approximately 30% of the world potato crop, compared with only 7% just 40 years ago.

While potato yields have been increasing dramatically, it is important to note that much of this progress has been due to the widespread and abundant use of agricultural chemicals, particularly for insect pest and disease control. Today, the world’s potato crop receives a greater total amount of pesticides than does any other food crop we grow. If the potato continues to be grown more extensively in developing countries, it would not be practical or economically sound merely to recommend a wider use of the conventional chemical control measures developed in the industrialized countries. We must search for more viable alternatives. What production technologies must be developed and implemented in order to realize more of the invaluable contribution that the potato can make to the conquest of hunger, while at the same time maintaining the quality of the environment, and conserving our natural resources in a sustainable agriculture?

The data, results, and recommendations presented in this book provide valuable guidelines for evaluation and further experimentation in the fields of potato farmers all over the world. Only in this way can valid potato production strategies be defined and implemented in each of the widely variable environments where potatoes are grown in the world.

We are living in one of the most exciting and critical periods in the history of mankind. The authors of this book have accepted the challenge of providing the multidisciplinary, technologic base for increasing potato production and productivity in a sustainable agriculture. By building on this base, we can realize even more of the potato’s potential for feeding an expanding world population during the next millennium.

Advances in Potato Pest Biology and Management

Introduction

Potato Pest Management: A Decade of Progress
Andean Potato Culture: 5,000 Years of Experience with Sustainable Agriculture

Part 2: Advances in Potato Pest Biology and Management: Insects

Biology and Management of Soil Insect Pests of Potato in Australia and New Zealand
Biology and Management of Wireworms on Potato
Colorado Potato Beetle: Diverse Life History Poses Challenge to Management
Biology and Management of Leafhoppers on Potato
The Potato (Tomato) Psyllid, Paratrioza cockerelli (Sulc), as a Pest of Potatoes

Part 3: Advances in Potato Pest Biology and Management: Viruses and Associated Insect Vectors

Action Thresholds for an Aphid Vector of Potato Leafroll Virus
Potato Leafroll Virus Management in the Pacific Northwest (USA)

Part 4: Advances in Potato Pest Biology and Management: Bacteria and Fungi

Management of Bacterial Ring Rot of Potato
Prospects for Control of Potato Diseases Caused by Pectolytic Erwinias
Common and Acid Scab of Potato: Management, Etiology and Potential Uses for the Phytotoxins Produced
     by Streptomyces Species
Management Strategies for Fungal Diseases of Tubers
Role of Early and Late Blight Suppression in Potato Pest Management
Potato Early Dying: Causes and Management Tactics in the Eastern and Western United States

Part 5: Advances in Potato Pest Biology and Management: Nematodes

Biology and Management of Root-Knot Nematodes on Potato in the Pacific Northwest
Management of Nematodes and Soil-Borne Pathogens in Subtropical Potato Production
Biology and Management of Nematode Parasites of Potato in Developing Countries

Part 6: Pesticide Resistance and Resistance Management

Strategies for the Management of Insect Resistance to Synthetic and Microbial Insecticides
Resistance Management Strategies for Transgenic Potato Plants
Monitoring Resistance in Colorado Potato Beetle Populations
Biochemical Mechanisms of Insecticide Resistance in the Colorado Potato Beetle
Selection and Management of Bacillus thuringiensis-Resistant Colorado Potato Beetle

Part 7: Alternative Management Strategies for Potato Pests: Cultural and Biological Control

Control of Black Scurf and Other Diseases of Potato Tubers with Green-Crop Harvesting and Antagonistic
     Organisms
The Influence of Cover Crops on the Suppression of Verticillium Wilt of Potato
Deployment Strategies for Antifeedants in Management of Colorado Potato Beetle
Biological Control of the Colorado Potato Beetle
Cultural Control of Colorado Potato Beetle: Off-Crop Management
Methods for Optimizing Field Performance of Bacillus thuringiensis Endotoxins Against Colorado Potato
     Beetle

Part 8: Alternative Management Strategies for Potato Pests: Host Plant Resistance

Insect Resistance in Potato: A Decade of Progress
Enhancing Resistance to Root-Knot Nematodes Derived from Wild Solanum Species in Potato Germplasm
Host Resistance for Management of Potato Late Blight

Part 9: Modeling and Expert Systems in Potato Pest Management

Modeling the Effects of Colorado Potato Beetle and Early Blight Defoliation on Potato Growth and Yield
Managing the Potato Crop with Computer Software
Development of an Expert System for Potato Integrated Pest Management

Part 10: Application of Biotechnology in Potato Pest Management

Engineered Resistance Against Potato Tuber Moth
Genetic Transformation of Potato for Insect Resistance
Development of Bacillus thuringiensis-Based Pesticides for the Control of Potato Insect Pests
Biotechnology and Resistance to Potato Viruses
Application of Protoplast Fusion Technology to Potato Disease Management
Double-Stranded RNA-Associated Cytoplasmic
Hypovirulence in Rhizoctonia solani: Prospects for Developing a Reliable, Target-Specific Biocontrol
     System

Part 11: Potato Pest Management: A Global View

Potato Pest Management in Developing Countries
Farmers' Perspectives on Potato Pest Management in Developing Countries: Interdisciplinary Research at
     the International Potato Center (CIP)
Potato Disease Management in Latin America
Development of Potatoes with Multiple Resistance to Biotic and Abiotic Stresses: The International Potato
     Center Approach
Virus Detection and Management in Developing Countries
The Potato's Global Potential