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CapitalPress.com
Friday, September 10, 2021
People & Places
Giving grain farmers the best tools
By BRAD CARLSON
Capital Press
Established 1928
University of Idaho cere-
als researcher Juliet Mar-
shall studies the environ-
ment as much as wheat and
barley varieties.
“The varieties that were
adapted 30 years ago aren’t
necessarily adapted now,”
the Idaho Falls-based plant
pathologist said. “The envi-
ronment is not static and
the diseases that are cir-
culating are not static. We
have new strains of fungal
pathogens that change and
viral pathogen strains that
change.”
Warmer weather, for
example, benefits corn. As
farmers grow more of that
high-water crop, fungi that
cause disease in wheat and
barley will proliferate.
“Fusarium head blight is
one of the bigger ones that
is a problem as a result of
higher corn production,”
Marshall said. Barley yel-
low dwarf is another. The
aphid-vectored virus can
build up on corn and move
to fall-planted wheat and
barley.
She is among the
researchers collaborating to
develop better ways to con-
trol fusarium head blight,
which produces a fungus-de-
rived toxin that accumulates
on grain. The project with
the U.S. Wheat and Barley
Scab Initiative has received
federal funding.
Marshall said researchers
are screening wheat and bar-
ley varieties for resistance,
and are working to identify
the best fungicides to apply
as well as the best timing of
application.
Capital Press Managers
Western
Innovator
JULIET
MARSHALL
Occupation: Univer-
sity of Idaho plant
pathologist, professor,
head of Plant Sciences
Department. Based at UI
Idaho Falls Research and
Extension Center.
University of Idaho
University of Idaho plant pathologist and cereals researcher Juliet Marshall is fo-
cused on wheat and barley yield, quality and disease resistance.
She said a recently tested
fungicide can be applied
over a longer period and still
reduce the disease and toxin,
“so it improves our ability
to control the disease. A lot
of previous fungicides had a
very, very narrow window.”
While rain often gets
strong consideration in Mid-
western studies of fusar-
ium head blight, Idaho work
by Marshall and her col-
leagues focuses much more
on humidity and tempera-
ture — particularly evening
temperatures that are favor-
able for the fungus to infect
plants.
Unusually warm summer
nights factored into the dis-
ease appearing in this year’s
Idaho barley crop farther
north and at higher eleva-
tions than usual, she said.
“The more warm nights
that we have at flowering,
the higher the chances of
infection,” Marshall said.
She is also working with
UI colleagues to identify
the pathogen faster using
molecular techniques. That
could help reduce spread by
optimizing fungicide appli-
cation amounts and timing,
she said.
As for barley yellow
dwarf, “the difficulty in
reducing virus transmission
from aphids is complicated
when our dryland producers
have to plant when moisture
is available,” Marshall said.
Rains came in early this
August, as corn continued to
grow, “and the aphids prefer
the newly planted wheat and
barley seedlings over aging
corn — increasing the like-
lihood of transferring the
virus.”
Many new cereal vari-
eties are being introduced.
Field trials seek to identify
disease resistance and yield
characteristics suited to a
production location while
“keeping the quality that the
end users really want from
those varieties,” she said.
Baking, milling or brewing
standards must be met, for
example.
“It’s key for our produc-
ers to know that there are
new varieties out there that
will be more economically
beneficial and sustainable to
Education: B.S., M.S.,
University of Delaware,
Newark; Ph.D., University
of Illinois, Urbana-Cham-
paign.
CORVALLIS, Ore. —
While studying how to con-
vert straw into fuel, Chris
Beatty got the chance to
learn a lot about the ryegrass
plant.
Although the interest in
such biofuels evaporated
with the advent of fracking
and the availability of cheap
natural gas, Beatty decided
he could still put that knowl-
edge to use in his next ven-
ture — Spiritopia, an artisan
distilled spirits producer.
When ryegrass is prepar-
ing to grow seed heads, it’s
“driving sugars up the plant”
that can be directly fer-
mented into alcohol, he said.
“I thought, wow, this would
make a really interesting
component for a whiskey.”
Getting his ryegrass
whiskey into the hands of
consumers would prove
anything but simple, how-
ever, as Spiritopia first had
to navigate a “regulatory
hell or purgatory.”
The Alcohol and Tobacco
Tax and Trade Bureau, a fed-
eral agency that regulates
labels, was unsure whether
ryegrass was fit for human
consumption and referred
the question to the U.S. Food
Mateusz Perkowski/Capital Press
Chris Beatty, founder of the Spiritopia distilled spirits
company, holds a bottle of ryegrass whiskey.
and Drug Administration.
“I thought there were
going to be issues but I did
not see that one coming,”
Beatty said.
The FDA, in turn,
informed Beatty that he’d
have to complete a toxico-
logical study to prove that
distilled ryegrass spirits are
safe.
“It takes a lot of time and
money, of which I had nei-
ther,” he said.
Beatty
was
leaning
toward shelving the idea
until a magazine devoted to
artisan spirits caught wind of
his dilemma and published
an article about it. That
compelled a fellow chem-
ist to notify Spiritopia that
FDA had already approved
an anti-allergy medication
made with ryegrass.
“With that information,
I was able to get ryegrass
approved as an ingredi-
ent,” Beatty said. “So, it was
rather dumb luck.”
After further negotiations
with the federal government
over the label, Spiritopia
finally released its ryegrass
whiskey in time for Christ-
mas in 2018 — about three
years after initially applying
for permission.
Beatty said he must reg-
ularly explain that ryegrass
whiskey is different from
rye whiskey, which is made
from fermented rye grain.
Rye tends to add spicy and
peppery flavors to alco-
hol, while ryegrass makes it
softer and earthier.
However, his company
does eventually want to
experiment with making
whiskey from ryegrass seeds
instead of from the grass.
That way, the product could
be produced at any time
Home: Idaho Falls
THROUGH SEPT. 11
Eastern Idaho State Fair: East-
ern Idaho Fairgrounds, 97 Park St.,
Blackfoot, Idaho. Website: https://
funatthefair.com/
THROUGH SEPT. 26
Washington State Fair: Wash-
ington State Fair Events Center, 110
9th Ave. SW, Puyallup, Wash. Open
Labor Day weekend. Closed Tues-
days and Sept. 8. Website: https://
www.thefair.com/
WEDNESDAY SEPT. 15
Small Farm School (outdoors):
Clackamas Community College,
Oregon City. Cost: $75 after Sept. 8.
No registration at the door. Due to
space limitations, Small Farm School
reserves the right to close registra-
tion on Sept. 1 or when 150 registra-
tions have been received. Contact:
503-678-1264 Website: https://blogs.
oregonstate.edu/smallfarmschool/
OSU Extension’s Seed and
Cereal Crop Production meeting
(online): 8:30 a.m. Agenda: agro-
nomic updates for grass seed from
OSU south valley field crops Exten-
sion agent Christy Tanner; updates
on slug control strategies from OSU
Extension slug expert Rory McDon-
nell; and new technologies for weed
control in grass seed from OSU assis-
tant professor Caio Brunharo. One
Oregon Department of Agriculture
credit offered for each session. The
session is free but you must regis-
ter to get the credit. Register: https://
beav.es/39d
Oregon Farm Bureau Trap
Shoot: 3 p.m. Albany Gun Club,
35305 Highway 20 SE, Albany, Ore.
Join Oregon Farm Bureau mem-
bers for an afternoon trap shoot and
dinner. Help raise funds for OFB’s
Political Action Committee, which
supports candidates and ballot ini-
tiatives that are good for Oregon’s
ag community. Contact: tiffany@ore-
gonfb.org
WEDNESDAY-
THURSDAY
SEPT. 15-16
Organic Produce Summit:
Hyatt Regency Hotel, Monterey, Calif.
The summit will feature ideas, infor-
mation and insights of the organic
fresh produce industry, as well as
educational sessions. Website: www.
organicproducesummit.com
WEDNESDAY-FRIDAY
SEPT. 15-17
68th National Reg Angus Con-
vention: Riverside Hotel, Boise. Pre-
sentations and workshops will focus
on innovation and elevating the
breed. Website: http://redangus.org
THURSDAY SEPT. 16
OSU Extension’s Seed and
Cereal Crop Production meet-
ing (online): 8:30 a.m. Agenda: an
update on the new USDA Agricul-
tural Research Service entomology
program from Seth Dorman, an ento-
mologist recently appointed to the
ARS Forage Seed and Cereal Research
Unit in Corvallis; a presentation on
the efficacy of common zinc phos-
phide baits for vole control from
USDA biologist Aaron Shiels, who has
been researching bait efficacy for the
Oregon seed industry this year; and
a report from Steve Salisbury of the
Oregon Seed Council on the poten-
tial for using rodenticide bait stations.
The session is free but you must reg-
ister to get the credit. Registration:
https://beav.es/39W
TUESDAY, SEPT. 21
18th Annual Oregon Farm
Bureau Classic Golf Tournament:
8 a.m. OGA Golf Course 2850 Hazel-
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To Reach Us
Family: Husband Bill
Clark, a commercial
wheat and barley breed-
er. Two adult children.
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Hobbies: Gardening,
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Idaho
Carol Ryan Dumas ..............208-860-3898
News Staff
Boise
Brad Carlson .......................208-914-8264
them,” Marshall said. Vari-
ety trials also benefit seed
companies by comparing a
new release to an industry
standard.
Idaho’s wheat and barley
commissions, farmers, crop
consultants, breeders and
other researchers all support
her work.
“I have a lot of collabo-
rators,” Marshall said. “The
first people who benefit are
the stakeholders — cereal
producers in the area.”
during the year instead of
immediately after the grass
is cut in late April or early
May at about 12-18 inches.
Spiritopia generally pro-
duces about 500 bottles
a year of ryegrass whis-
key, which are sold for $40
each at its distillery tasting
room in Corvallis, Ore. Each
annual batch requires less
than an acre of ryegrass, for
which a local farmer receives
“liquid compensation.”
The bulk of the “mash”
that’s fermented and dis-
tilled into ryegrass whiskey
is corn and barley, while rye-
grass makes up about 25%
of the biomass, Beatty said.
The ryegrass represents only
a few percentage points of
the finished alcohol, since
the other ingredients have
more fermentable sugars.
“It’s more about the fla-
vor it imparts to the whis-
key than the alcohol contri-
bution,” he said.
Aside from ryegrass
whiskey, Spiritopia uses
locally sourced apples,
grapes, peppermint and
other crops in its products,
and is planning to release a
pear brandy as well.
“We tend to do less
sugar and a more intense
flavor of whatever it is,”
he said.
Western Washington
Don Jenkins .........................360-722-6975
Eastern Washington
Matthew Weaver ................509-688-9923
Oregon
George Plaven ....................406-560-1655
Mateusz Perkowski .............800-882-6789
Sierra Dawn McClain ..........503-506-8011
Designer
Randy Wrighthouse .............800-882-6789
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Age: 57
Ryegrass overcomes ‘regulatory hell’ to become whiskey
By MATEUSZ PERKOWSKI
Capital Press
Joe Beach ..................... Editor & Publisher
Anne Long ................. Advertising Director
Carl Sampson .................. Managing Editor
Samantha McLaren ....Circulation Manager
nut Drive, Woodburn, Ore. Join Farm
Bureau members and support-
ers of Oregon agriculture for a fun
day of scramble-format golf. Help
raise funds for OFB’s Political Action
Committee, which supports candi-
dates and ballot initiatives that are
good for Oregon’s ag community.
Contact: tiffany@oregonfb.org
WEDNESDAY
SEPT. 22
Love the Land Benefit Con-
cert (virtual): Local farmers are at
the heart of our food system. And
yet, the barriers that they face are
staggering, especially for margin-
alized growers. From finding and
affording land to keeping it produc-
tive and resilient in the face of cli-
mate change, local farmers need
our support now more than ever.
That’s why Washington Farmland
Trust and Viva Farms are teaming
up for the second year in a row on a
virtual benefit concert to support a
resilient, equitable future for farm-
ing. Join us for an evening of inspi-
ration, music, and community as
we aim to raise $330,000 for local
farms. Featured artists include The
Decemberists, True Loves, Black Belt
Eagle Scout, Whitney Mongé, and
Sera Cahoone. Cost: $10 Website:
https://wafarmlandtrust.org/event/
love-the-land/
TUESDAY SEPT. 28
Public Lands Council 53rd
Annual Meeting (online): On
behalf of the Public Lands Coun-
cil Board of Directors and Execu-
tive Committee, we invite you to
attend the 2021 Public Lands Coun-
cil Virtual Annual Meeting on Tues-
day, Sept. 28. While we originally
planned to see you in Seaside, Ore.,
due to increased COVID-19 cases,
we have made the difficult decision
to move the annual meeting to a
virtual format. Website: https://bit.
ly/3sR4NH0
OSU Extension’s Seed and
Cereal Crop Production meeting
(online): 8:30 a.m. Agenda: a look at
Oregon Wheat Commission activi-
ties from Amanda Hoey, chief exec-
utive officer for the Oregon Wheat
Commission and the Oregon Wheat
Growers League; winter and spring
wheat variety recommendations
from OSU Extension cereal scientist
and assistant professor Ryan Graeb-
ner; and a report on best practices
for strong yields and pest manage-
ment in wheat from OSU field crops
agent Nicole Anderson. The ses-
sion is free but you must register to
get the credit. Registration:https://
beav.es/39h
CLARIFICATION
A recent story on the inclu-
sion of Kentucky bluegrass
in the Coronavirus Food
Assistance Program needs
to be clarified.
All types of grass seed are
now included in CFAP 2,
said Josh Hanning, acting
Oregon state director for
the Farm Service Agency.
For a complete list of com-
modities covered under
CFAP 2, go to farmers.gov/
cfap2/commodities.
Correction policy
Accuracy is important to Capital Press
staff and to our readers.
If you see a misstatement, omission or
factual error in a headline, story or photo
caption, please call the Capital Press news
department at 503-364-4431, or send
email to newsroom@capitalpress.com.
We want to publish corrections
to set the record straight.