DIVISION OF PLANT PATHOLOGY & MICROBIOLOGY
in The Department of Plant Sciences
College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Forbes Building 303,
P.O. Box 210036, Tucson AZ 85721-0036
(520) 621-1977, FAX (520) 621-7186

Dr. Mary Olsen
Specialist
Ph.D. (1982)
University of Arizona

e-mail: molsen@ag.arizona.edu

Area of Interest:

As Extension Specialist in Plant Pathology, I have programs in plant disease diagnosis and prevention/control recommendations for growers, industry representatives, pest control advisors, county agents and other specialists; instruction in plant disease identification and control at commodity meetings, extension sponsored seminars and professional training workshops; and information transfer about important plant diseases in Arizona including the Extension Plant Pathology web site: http://ag.arizona.edu/PLP/plpext/.
Research Goals:

My research programs are based on problem solving research, including the ecology of pathogens of important economic crops in Arizona and enhancement of existing control methods or development of alternative control strategies for plant diseases. The goals of my research are to find disease management strategies for Arizona growers that are effective and sustainable using both field based research and basic research methods in the laboratory.

 
Selected Publications:

    Effect Olsen, M. W. and J. Gilbert. 2010. Control of rapid blight in rough bluegrass overseeded Bermudagrass, 2009. Plant Diseases Management Reports, on line publication, Report No. 4:T045

    Douhan, G. W., Olsen, M. W., Herrell, A., Winder, C., Wong, F., and Entwistle, K. 2009. Genetic diversity of Labyrinthula terrestris, a newly emergent plant pathogen, and the discovery of new Labyrinthulid organisms. Mycological Research 113: 1192-1199

    Jennifer J. Randall, Natalie P. Goldberg, John D. Kemp, Maxim Radionenko, Jason M. French, Mary W. Olsen, and Stephen F. Hanson. Genetic Analysis of a Novel Xylella fastidiosa Subspecies Found in the Southwestern United States. Appl. Envir. Microbiol. 2009 75: 5631-5638. 

    Olsen, M. W. and J. Gilbert. 2008. Control of rapid blight in rough bluegrass overseeded Bermudagrass, 2007. Plant Diseases Management Reports, on line publication, Report No. 2:T030

    Brown, J. K., J. C. Guererro, M. Matheron, M. Olsen and A.M. Idris. 2007. Widespread Outbreak of Cucurbit yellow stunting disorder virus in Melon, Squash, and Watermelon Crops in the Sonoran Desert of Arizona and Sonora, Mexico. Plant Disease 91(6):773.On line: http://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/abs/10.1094/PDIS-91-6-0773A

    Olsen, M. W. 2007. Labyrinthula terrestris: a new pathogen of cool-season turfgrasses. Mol. Plant Pathology 8 (6) 817-820.

    Randall, J. J., Radionenko, M., French, J., M., Olsen, M. W., Goldberg, N., and Hanson, S. F. 2007. Xylella fastidiosa Detected in New Mexico in Chitalpa, a Common Landscape Ornamental Plant. Plant Disease 91:329.

    Stowell LJ, Martin SB, Olsen MW, Bigelow D, Kohout M, Peterson PD, Camberato J, Gelernter WD.  2005. Rapid Blight: A New Plant Disease.  APS Feature Article, July 2005.

    Bigelow, D. M., M. W. Olsen and R.L. Gilbertson.  2005.  Labyrinthula terrestris sp. nov. a new turfgrass pathogen. Mycologia 97: 185-190.
    Bonde, M. R., D. K. Berner, S. E. Nester, G. L. Peterson, M. W. Olsen, B. M. Cunfer and T. Sim. 2004. Survival of Tilletia indica teliospores in different soils. Plant Disease 88:316-324.

    Olsen, M. W., D. Bigelow, R. L. Gilbertson, L. Stowell and W. Gelernter. 2003.  First report of a Labyrinthula sp. causing rapid blight disease of rough bluegrass and perennial ryegrass.  Plant Disease 87:1267.

For more information contact:
Dr. Mary Olsen
Division of Plant Pathology & Microbiology
 University of Arizona
303 Forbes Building
P.O. Box 210036
Tucson, AZ 85721-0036

 

Office Phone: (520)626-2681
Fax: (520)621-7186

http://cals.arizona.edu/PLP/faculty/olsen.html
last update: August 18, 2006 		© 2005 The University of Arizona. All contents copyrighted. All rights reserved.