COLUMBUS, Ohio — In June strawberry festivals pop up as towns compete to turn the tasty item into a fun event.  

This year however, strawberry supplies may be slightly less than past years due to the fungal disease Neopestalotiopsis, commonly called “Neo-P.” It’s a pathogen that can spread rapidly. Although the fungus poses no threat to human health, it damages every part of the strawberry plant and results in lost crops.

 “Consumers can expect that there will be a limited supply of Ohio-grown strawberries this year,” said Melanie L. Lewis Ivey, associate professor of fruit pathology in the Department of Plant Pathology at the Ohio state University College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CFAES). “Based on reduced supply, the price of strawberries may be higher than in previous years.”

 CFAES provides guidance and support to growers who are faced with limited fungicide options and no resistant strawberry varieties available.

 “Neo-P, which was first identified in Ohio in 2021, has made it increasingly difficult for growers to obtain healthy transplants,” said Ivey, who is also a fresh produce safety specialist with OSU Extension. “The primary challenge growers have faced is purchasing disease-free transplants. Most Ohio producers now plant in the fall for a spring/summer harvest, but last fall, nurseries were unable to supply transplants due to Neo-P.”

 The disease is particularly problematic for greenhouse and high tunnel growers, as there are even fewer fungicide options available for controlled environment agriculture than for field production.

 “There are no varieties that are resistant to the fungal pathogen, and managing the disease in greenhouses is especially difficult,” Ivey said. “We’re assessing the ability of the pathogen to overwinter in Ohio soils. We’re also working to identify the disease early to prevent the introduction of the fungus into new plantings.”

 Dr. Nicole Gauthier, University of Kentucky Plant Pathologist, says Neo-P first showed up in Kentucky in August.

 “We’re suspecting the disease came in the state through commercial plugs,” Gauthier said, “and we’re certain even backyard gardens will end up with this fungus this spring. It’s super challenging because Neo-P looks just like the other strawberry diseases. This disease has negatively impacted research because we obtain transplants form the same nurseries as field growers.”

“The strawberry season is going strong in Tennessee, though there have been a few growing challenges,” said Kim Doddridge, Public Information officer at the Tennessee Department of Agriculture.

“Below-average temperatures in late March in some parts of the state put strawberry plants at risk of frost damage. And of course, we have to deal with Neo-P.”

 Neo-P has been found in all Midwest states, including Illinois, but for most strawberry operations across this state it’s business as usual.

 Flamm Orchards in Cobden, Illinois opened for the strawberry season on April 26. It’s a little bit of a later start for the season due to the very wet spring season and many in this area have wondered if the historic rain event in April would affect this year’s strawberry crop.

 Co-owner Austin Flamm the only effect to this year’s crop was a later start by about three weeks.

 “We’re a few weeks later opening later this year,” Flamm said, “and that’s due to the cool and wet weather we’ve had in early spring. Typically when we open we are worried about the supply because we aren’t in full production yet. But production does not seem to be an issue right now.”