National Agricultural Genotyping Center in Fargo Is Part of the Solution for Soybeans and Apiculture
In partnership with: North Dakota Department of Agriculture
A series of colorful, thumbprint-size dots appear on a computer screen in Zack Bateson’s lab. He sifts through the dots carefully, seeking to crack the code. The DNA patterns he’s studying may be based on a single leaf but could potentially save thousands of acres of soybeans from the devastation of noxious pigweeds.
The lab where researcher Bateson works is located in the National Agricultural Genotyping Center (NAGC), a private research facility housed on the campus of North Dakota State University in Fargo. The center offers quick turnaround, confidential testing, and diagnosis of pathogens and pests. The benefit to farmers and all those they feed is greater crop preservation, higher yields and potential new markets. And it all began with honeybees.
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Buzzing Bee-ginnings
Shortly after it opened in the summer of 2016, the NAGC received an invitation from the North Dakota Department of Agriculture to help solve a threat to commercial beekeeping operations. North Dakota has been the No. 1 honey-producing state for 17 consecutive years, says Josh Freeman, whose family-owned Noyes Apiaries consists of about 14,000 hives. However, the industry has been experiencing a crisis from higher-than-average colony losses, he says. And what happens in the hive not only affects honey flow, it affects crops all over the U.S., including major ones like almonds in California. California is the world’s No. 1 almond producer, and nearly two-thirds of all U.S. honeybees are sent there to pollinate the trees.
For the next two years, Bateson and other NAGC researchers flew to California, donned bee suits and collected samples to bring back to their lab. Their team collaborated with bee industry regulators, and together they isolated a number of pathogens – viruses and bacterial and fungal infections – most responsible for declining colonies. The NAGC now has a quantitative honeybee pathogen panel that screens for 15 different pathogens, helping beekeepers assess the health of honeybees and determine a course of action.
Fieldwork Findings
But the NAGC’s findings help far beyond hives. Five crops – rice, wheat, corn, soybeans and potatoes – account for half of global human calorie intake. New threats surface each year and pathogens and pests are the number one food robbers, Bateson says. They’re responsible for up to 30% of losses.
A more recent application of the NAGC’s technology took Bateson and others deeper in the weeds, this time to tackle an unwelcome crop surfacing in soybean fields.
North Dakota is the fourth-largest state in soybean acreage, says Kendall Nichols, director of research at the North Dakota Soybean Council.
“We have grown immensely in the last 20 years,” she says. “We now produce soybeans throughout the state, even in arid regions.” The crops go beyond traditional uses – food and vegetable oil – and now have a wide variety of applications, including alternative fuel.
See more: North Dakota’s Top 10 Agricultural Commodities
Several varieties of weeds started appearing, significantly affecting yields by robbing the soybeans of moisture and nutrients. One in particular, Palmer amaranth, proved resistant to certain herbicides, and soybean farmers were struggling with identifying it quickly enough to select a course of treatment.
Generally, herbicides are most effective when the weed is about an inch tall. But when they’re small, pigweeds look relatively similar. That’s where genetic testing comes in, Nichols says. “Under the ideal growing conditions, Palmer amaranth can grow 2 to 3 inches in a day,” she notes. “To identify when they’re small, you have a very short window.”
Before the NAGC, soybean farmers had to send their samples out of state to get them confirmed. But the center’s rapid turnaround Palmer Amaranth Testing can help farmers shut down an early infestation and possibly avoid an established population of this highly productive weed.
There’s a Test for That
Even with its menu of available tests, Bateson says new applications are evolving. He sees opportunities to work more with veterinarians since they serve beekeepers and understand pathogen testing. Bateson is eager to help solve problems in agriculture.
“What gets me excited is when we have a researcher or Extension agent ask, ‘Hey Zack do you havea test for this?’” Bateson says.
For more information, check out the following websites:
National Agricultural Genotyping Center: genotypingcenter.com
North Dakota Soybean Council: ndsoybean.org
North Dakota Beekeepers Association: ndbeekeepers.org