Onion industry mulls future at Field Day

Diseases chief concern in growing year

In spite of concerns about diseases, several members of the onion industry are maintaining a good outlook for the future.

Around 70 people gathered in the Wayne Ker Farms onion field outside of Quincy Friday morning for the annual Columbia Basin Onion Field Day.

Growers and sellers alike were present to examine how different varieties of onion handle different methods of growing, and to discuss several diseases that are impacting the industry.

Lindsey du Toit, Washington State University seed pathologist, said that days like the Columbia Basin Onion Field Day are important to bring the industry together — growers and seed-company representatives — to discuss the issues important to them.

"It's really an educational program of outreach to talk with the growers and have actual material for them to look at to see what's going on — what diseases look like, or what pests or weed problems or production issues are affecting the industry," du Toit said.

Du Toit and Gary Pelter, WSU area extension educator for commercial vegetables and vegetable seed, said that the primary concerns for the onion industry this year are iris yellow spot virus and powdery mildew.

"There are a lot of questions that need to be answered, and that's the need for additional research," du Toit said about iris yellow spot virus.

She said one option for growers to battle the diseases is to select cultivars, or varieties of onion, because of variation susceptibility or to select an irrigation method.

"A lot of recommendations can be made right now, but many more questions need to be answered," she said.

It's information of this kind that drew people in the onion industry to the event.

"It just shows you what's going on as far as how the crop is coming down and how it's carrying out," said Dan Commins, sales manager for Onions Direct. "(The growing year) is not finished yet, but it looks good. I think we're doing good with our work with seeds and with different diseases."

Snow Seed Company sales manager Keith Wigen said he was in attendance to evaluate the hybrids on display at the event.

"We have some extreme disease pressure here, some new diseases moving in, and there's definitely some differences in the way the varieties respond," he said.

Wigen said that harvest time is getting closer, and said that it had been a good year for most of the onion area.

"This area up here seems to be hit a little bit harder by diseases than most, however," he said.

Guy Hansen, sales manager for Elmer Hansen Produce in Moses Lake, said that the day offers a chance to see the pluses and minuses of different onion varieties, since they are all planted at the same time and grown under the same conditions.

"It takes years to get enough seed (for the experimental varieties) for the farmer to buy, and so here you can see it three, four, five years in advance and see what it really is doing," Hansen said.

Regarding the growing year, Hansen said he could use six weeks without rain before harvest time comes. He said he has heard there will be a good market for red onions.

Vicki Sligar, supervisor of Grant, Chelan and Douglas counties for the National Agriculture Statistics for the Department of Agriculture (NASDA), said she was in attendance in preparation for a pending vegetable chemical survey.

"We know that there's a disease going on on our onion fields, and we need to survey our onion growers to find out so they can get some federal funding, and hopefully we will understand what they're needing in the field from the government," Sligar said.