Have you seen apple or pear scab this season?
Have you seen apple or pear scab this season?
If you know of an orchard, actively managed or not, where apples or pears are grown, DPIRD’s plant pathologist Andrew Taylor and his team are interested in hearing from you. The research includes sampling for apple and pear scab and requires field site locations for important research trials to be conducted over several growing seasons. This national research project is underway to tackle apple and pear scab, caused by the fungus Venturia inaequalis and Venturia pirina.
More information on the project can be found here SAAFE CRC • Management of Apple Scab
If you know of any orchards that might be suitable for this research, it would be great to connect them with Susie or Andrew at applescab@dpird.wa.gov.au . This could be a valuable contribution to the project! All trapping and monitoring sites can remain anonymous
The project involves:
Collecting Isolates: Researchers are looking for orchards with signs of apple or pear scab to collect fungal isolates.
Spore Traps and Weather Stations: Over the next three years, spore traps and weather stations will be installed across growing regions in WA to monitor and collect scab spores and compare with disease models.
Fungicide Resistance Testing: The project will measure the prevalence and extent of fungicide resistance in V. inaequalis isolates, testing them in the lab against currently registered fungicides.
Collaboration: This initiative is a collaboration between DPIRD, Curtin University’s CCDM, and the SAAFE CRC.
Focus on Lifecycle and Management: The research will focus on understanding the disease lifecycle under Western Australian conditions and developing optimal management strategies.
