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Sequential Sampling for Estimation and Classification of the Incidence of Hop Powdery Mildew II: Cone Sampling

Sequential sampling models for estimation and classification of the incidence of powdery mildew (caused by Podosphaera macularis) on hop (Humulus lupulus) cones were developed using parameter estimates of the binary power law derived from the analysis of 221 transect data sets (model construction data set) collected from 41 hop yards sampled in Oregon and Washington from 2000 to 2005. Stop lines, models that determine when sufficient information has been collected to estimate mean disease incidence and stop sampling, for sequential estimation were validated by bootstrap simulation using a subset of 21 model construction data sets and simulated sampling of an additional 13 model construction data sets. Achieved coefficient of variation (C) approached the prespecified C as the estimated disease incidence, , increased, although achieving a C of 0.1 was not possible for data sets in which < 0.03 with the number of sampling units evaluated in this study. The 95% confidence interval of the median difference between of each yard (achieved by sequential sampling) and the true p of the original data set included 0 for all 21 data sets evaluated at levels of C of 0.1 and 0.2. For sequential classification, operating characteristic (OC) and average sample number (ASN) curves of the sequential sampling plans obtained by bootstrap analysis and simulated sampling were similar to the OC and ASN values determined by Monte Carlo simulation. Correct decisions of whether disease incidence was above or below prespecified thresholds (p_t) were made for 84.6 or 100% of the data sets during simulated sampling when stop lines were determined assuming a binomial or beta-binomial distribution of disease incidence, respectively. However, the higher proportion of correct decisions obtained by assuming a beta-binomial distribution of disease incidence required, on average, sampling 3.9 more plants per sampling round to classify disease incidence compared with the binomial distribution. Use of these sequential sampling plans may aid growers in deciding the order in which to harvest hop yards to minimize the risk of a condition called “cone early maturity” caused by late-season infection of cones by P. macularis. Also, sequential sampling could aid in research efforts, such as efficacy trials, where many hop cones are assessed to determine disease incidence.