Alan R. Biggs

Alan R. Biggs, Ph.D.
WVU-KTFREC
P.O. Box 609
Kearneysville, WV 25430

Alan.Biggs@mail.wvu.edu

Education:
- The Pennsylvania State University - Ph.D., Plant Pathology (1982)
- The Pennsylvania State University - M.Sc., Plant Pathology (1978)
- The Pennsylvania State University - B.Sc., Forest Biology (1976)
Employment History:
- Professor of Plant Pathology and Extension Specialist,-- Tree Fruit Pathology, West Virginia University, Kearneysville Tree Fruit Research and Education Center, P. O. Box 609, Kearneysville, WV 25430. Member - Graduate Faculty. July 1, 1995 - present.
- Associate Professor of Plant Pathology and Extension Specialist,-- Tree Fruit Pathology, West Virginia University, Kearneysville Tree Fruit Research and Education Center, P. O. Box 609, Kearneysville, WV 25430. Member - Graduate Faculty. September 1, 1989 - June 30, 1995.
- Research Scientist and Head, Plant Pathology Section, Agriculture Canada, Vineland Research Station, Vineland Station, Ontario. Fungal and bacterial diseases of tree fruits, administration of the Plant Pathology section. April 1986 - August, 1989.
- Research Scientist, Agriculture Canada, Vineland Research Station, Vineland Station, Ontario. Fungal and bacterial diseases of tree fruits. January 1983 - March 1986.
Research Interests:
- Organic, alternative, and ecosystem-based apple culture: Leader of a multidisciplinary team to investigate sustainable and organic systems for fresh and processing apple production.
- Fire blight epidemiology and disease management.
- Canker diseases: Mechanisms of disease resistance, breeding for disease resistance with conventional methods and with somaclonal variation, physiology of the host/parasite interaction, tissue culture, integrated pest management.
- Brown rot of stone fruits: Ecology and epidemiology, biology of overwintering, influence of environment on infection, influence of fruit age and inoculum density on infection, evaluation of disease management strategies, integrated pest management.
- Apple diseases: Control of apple scab with sterol-inhibiting fungicides, pre-infection and post-symptom effects, use of sterol-inhibiting fungicides in integrated pest management programs, influence of fungicides on apple orchard arthropods, role of sterol-inhibiting fungicides on overwintering of V. inaequalis, evaluation of disease management strategies, disease prediction and modeling, suppression of rot diseases with calcium compounds.
- Electronic technology for extension communication (see The Kearneysville Tree Fruit Research and Education Center World Wide Web Home Page).

Awards and Honors:
- Lee M. Hutchins Award from the American Phytopathological Society. This award is presented annually and recognizes the best contribution, presented in one or more full-length papers, in research on diseases of perennial fruit plants; received in 1993.
Service:
- Editor-in-Chief of Plant Disease (2001 - 2003)
- Senior Editor of Plant Disease (1998 - 2000)
- Associate Editor of Plant Disease (1994 - 1996)
- Associate Editor of Phytopathology (1988 - 1990)
Recent Refereed Publications in Scientific Journals:
- Dewdney, M. M., Biggs, A. R., and Turechek, W. W. 2007. A statistical comparison of the blossom blight forecasts of Maryblyt and Cougarblight with receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis. Phytopathology 97: 1164-1176.
- Grove, G. G. and Biggs, A. R. 2006. Production and dispersal of conidia of Leucostoma cinctum in peach and cherry orchards under irrigation in Eastern Washington. Plant Disease 90:587-591.
- Biggs, A. R. and Grove, G. G. 2006. Leucostoma canker of stone fruits. The Plant Health Instructor. DOI: 10.1094/PHI-I-2005-1220-01.
- Biggs, A. R and N.W. Miles. 2005. Variation in wound healing and resistance to Leucostoma persoonii in peach derived from embryo culture. HortScience 40:1585-1586.
- Biggs, A. R. and S.S. Miller. 2005. Relative susceptibility of NE-183 apple cultivars to fruit rot pathogens in West Virginia. Journal of the American Pomological Society. 59: 72-77.
- Biggs, A. R. and S. S. Miller. 2004. Relative susceptibility of selected apple cultivars to Botryosphaeria obtusa. HortScience 39:303-306.
- Biggs, A. R. 2004. Effect of inoculum concentration and calcium salts on infection of apple fruit by Botryosphaeria dothidea. Plant Disease 88:147-151.
- Biggs, A. R. and S. S. Miller. 2003. Relative susceptibility of selected apple cultivars to Botryosphaeria dothidea. HortScience 38:400-403.
- Biggs, A. R. and S. S. Miller. 2001. Relative susceptibility of selected NE-183 apple cultivars to Colletotrichum acutatum. Plant Disease 85:657-660.
- Biggs, A. R., H. W. Hogmire, and A. R. Collins. 2000. Assessment of an alternative IPM program for the production of apples for processing. Plant Disease 84:1140-1146.
- Biggs, A. R. 2000. Evaluation of calcium chloride for apple disease control, 1994-1997. Biological and Cultural Tests for Control of Plant Diseases 15:47-48.
- Biggs, A. R. 2000. Comparison of rotary and flail mowers for inhibiting fungal reproduction on apple prunings. Biological and Cultural Tests for the Control of Plant Diseases 15:49-50.
- Biggs, A. R. 1999. Effects of calcium salts on apple bitter rot caused by two Colletotrichum spp. Plant Disease 83: 1001-1005.
- Biggs, A. R. and G. G. Grove. 1998. Role of the World Wide Web in Extension plant pathology: Case studies in tree fruits and grapes. Plant Disease 82:452-464.

-- Many of the publications are available here.

Books:

Defense Mechanisms of Woody Plants Against Fungi. 1992. Blanchette, R.A. and A.R. Biggs, Eds. Springer-Verlag (Berlin) 458 pp. Cytology, Histology, and Histochemistry of Fruit Tree Diseases. 1993. Biggs, A.R., Editor. CRC Press, Inc. 330 pp.

01/29/2008 12:49:15 PM