Sonia Lee, S. Fowler, C. Lange, L. Smith, A. Evans
{"title":"Unexpected parasitism of Douglas-fir seed chalcid limits biocontrol options for invasive Douglas-fir in New Zealand","authors":"Sonia Lee, S. Fowler, C. Lange, L. Smith, A. Evans","doi":"10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11725","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11725","url":null,"abstract":"Douglas-fir seed chalcid (DFSC) Megastigmus spermotrophus, a small (3 mm long) host-specific seed-predatory wasp, was accidentally introduced into New Zealand in the 1920s. Concern over DFSC reducing Douglas-fir seed production in New Zealand led to an attempt at biocontrol in 1955 with the release, but failed establishment, of the small (2.5 mm long) parasitoid wasp, Mesopolobus spermotrophus. We investigated why DFSC causes little destruction of Douglas-fir seed in New Zealand (usually <20%) despite the apparent absence of major natural enemies. Douglas-fir seed collections from 13 New Zealand sites yielded the seed predator (DFSC) but also potential parasitoids, which were identified using morphology and partial COI DNA sequencing. DFSC destroyed only 0.15% of Douglas-fir seed. All parasitoids were identified as the pteromalid wasp, Mes. spermotrophus, the host-specific biocontrol agent released in 1955. Total parasitism was 48.5%, but levels at some sites approached 90%, with some evidence of density-dependence. The discovery of the parasitoid Mes. spermotrophus could indicate that the biocontrol agent released in 1955 did establish after all. Alternatively, Mes. spermotrophus could have arrived accidentally in more recent importations of Douglas-fir seed. The high level of parasitism of DFSC by Mes. spermotrophus is consistent with DFSC being under successful biological control in New Zealand. Suppression of DFSC populations will benefit commercial Douglas-fir seed production in New Zealand, but it also represents the likely loss of a potential biological control agent for wilding Douglas-fir.","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"7 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-10-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"82688740","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"The relative susceptibility of grapevine rootstocks to black foot disease is dependent on inoculum pressure","authors":"C. Bleach, H. Ridgway, M. Jaspers, E. Jones","doi":"10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11735","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11735","url":null,"abstract":"Black foot disease of grapevines is a major economic issue for the viticulture industry worldwide. The disease is mainly associated with a complex of pathogen species within the genera Dactylonectria and Ilyonectria. The susceptibility of six grapevine rootstock cultivars to black foot disease under field conditions was assessed. Callused rootstocks of 101-14, 5C, 420A, Riparia Gloire, Schwarzmann and 3309C were planted into soil containing low natural pathogen populations or inoculated with isolates representing the species diversity in New Zealand. Disease incidence, disease severity and dry weight accumulation were assessed after 8 months of growth. Root and shoot dry weights were not significantly affected by inoculation treatment, but differed among rootstock cultivars, with cultivar 420A having the lowest root and shoot dry weight, cultivar 3309C having the largest shoot dry weight and cultivar 5C the largest root dry weight. The relative susceptibility of rootstocks differed significantly depending on whether they were grown under low natural inoculum pressure or a higher pressure in artificially inoculated soil. Schwarzmann and Riparia Gloire rootstock cultivars were the least susceptible under natural low inoculum pressure, but were the most susceptible in inoculated soil. In contrast, 5C was one of the most susceptible under low inoculum levels but was the least susceptible under high pathogen pressure. The result of the study indicate that black foot pathogen inoculum levels in soil affect the relative susceptibility of grapevine rootstocks to infection, and may have implications for the selection of rootstocks for planting.","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"322 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-09-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80285763","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
D. Logan, C. Rowe, C. McKenna, J. Herrick, P. Rogers
{"title":"Phenology of greenhouse thrips (Heliothrips haemorrhoidalis) on kiwifruit vines, shelter trees and alternative host plants","authors":"D. Logan, C. Rowe, C. McKenna, J. Herrick, P. Rogers","doi":"10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11743","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11743","url":null,"abstract":"The greenhouse thrips, Heliothrips haemorrhoidalis is a quarantine pest of kiwifruit. There is a need for reliable information on its phenology in kiwifruit orchards to inform the development of new management options. Numbers of larval, pupal and adult greenhouse thrips were counted on leaves of the two main kiwifruit cultivars Actinidia chinensis var. deliciosa (‘Hayward’) at two sites at different times and A. chinensis var. chinensis ‘Zesy002’ at one site. Greenhouse thrips were also counted on leaves of shelter tree species Cryptomeria japonica, and other plants present on kiwifruit orchards, blackberry (Rubus fruticosus s.l.), barberry (Berberis glaucocarpa), and wineberry (Aristotelia serrata) across a number of sites at different times. There was a strong seasonal pattern to the phenology of greenhouse thrips and it was relatively synchronous for all the host plants surveyed. In general, number of greenhouse thrips on foliage increased from January to peak in April or May before declining in late autumn or winter and remaining low until the following January or February. The phenology of greenhouse thrips followed the same seasonal pattern for a variety of host plants found on kiwifruit orchards at sites in the Bay of Plenty across two two-year time periods. Therefore, host species does not appear to be a factor affecting the phenology of thrips. Other, non-host factors such as microclimate may be important drivers of phenology but they require further study. The consistency of the seasonal pattern of relative abundance means that there is a well-defined window to target for thrips management.","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-08-31","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"81786919","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Determining the presence of host specific toxin genes, ToxA and ToxB, in New Zealand Pyrenophora tritici-repentis isolates, and susceptibility of wheat cultivars","authors":"S. Weith, H. Ridgway, E. Jones","doi":"10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11724","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11724","url":null,"abstract":"Tan spot, caused by Pyrenophora tritici-repentis (Ptr), is an important disease of wheat worldwide, and an emerging issue in New Zealand. The pathogen produces host-specific toxins which interact with the wheat host sensitivity loci. Identification of the prevalence of the toxin encoding genes in the local population, and the susceptibility of commonly grown wheat cultivars to Ptr will aid selection of wheat cultivars to reduce disease risk. Twelve single spore isolates collected from wheat-growing areas of the South Island of New Zealand representing the P. tritici-repentis population were characterised for the Ptr ToxA and ToxB genes, ToxA and ToxB, respectively, using two gene specific primers. The susceptibility of 10 wheat cultivars to P. triticirepentis was determined in a glasshouse experiment by inoculating young plants with a mixed-isolate spore inoculum. All 12 New Zealand P. tritici-repentis isolates were positive for the ToxA gene but none were positive for the ToxB gene. Tan spot lesions developed on all inoculated 10 wheat cultivars, with cultivars ‘Empress’ and ‘Duchess’ being the least susceptible and ‘Discovery’, ‘Reliance’ and ‘Saracen’ the most susceptible cultivars to infection by the mixed-isolate spore inoculum used. The results indicated that the cultivars ‘Empress’ and ‘Duchess’ may possess a level of tolerance to P. tritici-repentis and would, therefore, be recommended for cultivation in regions with high tan spot incidence.","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"22 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-04-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72657799","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
A. M. Mudiyanselage, H. Ridgway, M. Walter, Jason T. Smith, M. Jaspers, E. Jones
{"title":"Factors affecting sporulation and infection of Peronospora sparsa in New Zealand boysenberry gardens","authors":"A. M. Mudiyanselage, H. Ridgway, M. Walter, Jason T. Smith, M. Jaspers, E. Jones","doi":"10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11726","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11726","url":null,"abstract":"Downy mildew, caused by Peronospora sparsa, is an economically important disease of boysenberries. Sporangia produced on infected tissue initiate berry infections; however the timing of sporangial release under New Zealand environmental conditions is unknown. The number of P. sparsa sporangia trapped on Vaseline®-coated slides placed weekly in three boysenberry gardens in the Nelson region from October to December in 2010 and September to December in 2011 was determined. Climate data were used to determine environmental factors that promoted sporangia production/release. Incidence of dryberry symptoms and sporulation on tissue samples incubated at 15 or 20°C under high relative humidity (RH) were assessed. Peronospora sparsa sporangia were observed on slides from all three sites, with peak sporangial numbers in mid-November in both years. Sites with the highest numbers of sporangia trapped in November had higher dryberry incidence in December. Data indicated that sporangial release was triggered by percentage of rainy days, RH and warm temperatures (16–23°C) in early spring, where high moisture periods promoted sporulation and a subsequent dry period allowed sporangial release. This study improves understanding of the timing of sporangial release to inform management practices.","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"106 1","pages":"10-19"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-02-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80646235","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
K. Boyd-Wilson, M. V. Marroni, M. McNeill, D. Teulon
{"title":"New Zealand indigenous Myrtaceae in foreign botanic gardens: testing the sentinel plant concept for biosecurity risk assessment","authors":"K. Boyd-Wilson, M. V. Marroni, M. McNeill, D. Teulon","doi":"10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11728","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11728","url":null,"abstract":"The use of sentinel or expatriate plants is a growing concept for risk assessment in plant biosecurity. This approach involves ascertaining the presence and impact of pests and pathogens on plants foreign to a given location but planted in international botanic gardens or arboreta. The data obtained provide information on the potential pest status of these pests and pathogens, as invasive alien species (IAS), to plant species in their native or indigenous range. Assessment of the biosecurity threat from IAS for indigenous plants not found within the geographic distribution of these pests and pathogens is challenging, however, as they may be relatively taxonomically distinct from plants found in the distribution of the IAS and can be in different climates and environments. We examine the sentinel/expatriate concept in relation to risk assessment for myrtle rust (Austropuccinia psidii) on New Zealand Myrtaceae on these plants found in botanic gardens and arboreta outside New Zealand. Between September 2017 and September 2018, we identified and then contacted 65 botanic gardens or arboreta that putatively had New Zealand Myrtaceae and were within the known distribution of myrtle rust. We asked for information on the presence of New Zealand Myrtaceae species in their collections and whether these plants were infected by myrtle rust. Sixteen gardens/arboreta responded; most were in Australia or the United States. Only one of these gardens provided information that was useful for biosecurity risk assessment for myrtle rust on New Zealand Myrtaceae. The results are discussed in the context of plant biosecurity risk assessment and the broader sentinel/expatriate plant concept.","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"27 1","pages":"1-9"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-02-07","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"83606116","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Apple blossom-end rot due to Neonectria ditissima is initiated by infections at full flowering and incipient petal fall","authors":"Hinrich H. F. Holthusen, R. Weber","doi":"10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11727","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11727","url":null,"abstract":"Neonectria ditissima is a major cause of blossom-end rot (eye rot, calyx-end rot) as a pre-harvest fruit rot of apple in Northwestern Europe. Artificial inoculation of trees was undertaken at close intervals under natural conditions during flowering in order to obtain a higher-resolution definition of the most susceptible phenological stage of apple for blossom-end rot infections by N. ditissima. Similar trials were conducted for another blossom-end rot fungus, Botrytis pseudocinerea. Results for N. ditissima showed full bloom to be the most susceptible stage for infection in cultivar ‘Pinova’, whereas with cultivar ‘Nicoter’ the highest infection rates were obtained at full bloom to petal fall, reflecting temporal differences in flower development between one-year-old and older wood. Few infections were observed by inoculation at the beginning of flowering or about one week after petal fall when no petals were left on the flowers, and the fruit knots were enlarging. This finding shortens the time-span for infections as compared to previous knowledge. Floral inoculations with conidia of B. pseudocinerea were unsuccessful. Options to control blossom-end rot in integrated pest management include a timing of scab or powdery mildew fungicide sprays to full bloom, and canker pruning just ahead of flowering in orchards strongly affected by N. ditissima.","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"28 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"77407840","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Guest Editorial for Special Issue Volume 74S","authors":"R. Scheper, Monika Walter","doi":"10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11732","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/NZPP.2021.74.11732","url":null,"abstract":"Special Issue: Fourth International Workshop on European Fruit Tree Canker and Resilient Orchards 2–6 November 2020, New Zealand, online via Zoom","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"122 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-26","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74466451","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Sulav Paudel, S. Marshall, F. Tsatsia, C. Fanai, Max Kolubalona, S. Mansfield, T. Jackson
{"title":"Monitoring an invasive coconut rhinoceros beetle population using pheromone traps in Honiara, Solomon Islands","authors":"Sulav Paudel, S. Marshall, F. Tsatsia, C. Fanai, Max Kolubalona, S. Mansfield, T. Jackson","doi":"10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11742","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11742","url":null,"abstract":"An invasive population of the coconut rhinoceros beetle (Oryctes rhinoceros; CRB) was discovered in Honiara, Guadalcanal, Solomon Islands in 2015. The beetle has caused severe damage to coconut palms in the outbreak area and its continued spread threatens the food security and livelihood of thousands of smallholder farmers in the region. Spread and abundance of the beetle were monitored using bucket traps baited with the aggregation pheromone, ethyl-4 methyloctanoate. Beetles were collected from traps approximately bi-weekly for two periods; one during 2017–18 and the other during 2019–2020. Trap catches showed that CRB was present throughout the whole survey region with significantly higher numbers of female CRB trapped than males. Results indicate a significant 1.5-fold increase in CRB trap catch numbers from 2017–2018 to 2019–2020 despite control efforts. The number of CRB adults trapped also varied between sites and months during both time periods but with no clear patterns. Removal of breeding sites along with strong local quarantine should remain the top priority of the local government to contain CRB expansion within Solomon Islands and beyond.","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"6 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88560233","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Xiang-ming Xu, L. Olivieri, A. Gange, L. Vorster, Don Rice, R. Campbell, M. Walter
{"title":"Does apple canker develop independently on leaf scars of a single apple shoot?","authors":"Xiang-ming Xu, L. Olivieri, A. Gange, L. Vorster, Don Rice, R. Campbell, M. Walter","doi":"10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11739","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.30843/nzpp.2021.74.11739","url":null,"abstract":"European apple canker, caused by Neonectria ditissima, causes serious damage to apple trees, particularly young trees. Canker management is difficult because of the limited availability of effective fungicides, the long latency period, inoculum abundance and host resistance in commercial cultivars as well as the need for costly manual pruning interventions. To understand disease aggregation for more effective pruning management, we assessed whether canker infection and subsequent lesion development on leaf scars are independent from each other on the same shoot. Four inoculation experiments were conducted: one in glasshouse, and three in orchards. On each shoot, 10 consecutive leaf scars were inoculated and assessed for visible cankers over time in situ. Number of cankers developed per shoot as well as spatial distribution of these cankers within a shoot was statistically analysed. Most data of the number of visible canker lesions on a single shoot failed to fit binomial distributions (indicator for independence) and were fitted much better by beta binomial distributions. In a number of cases (4–20%), there appeared to be positive association between lesion development on neighbouring leaf scars. However, in one experiment where laboratory incubation and isolation of N. ditissima from inoculated but asymptomatic leaf scars (after eight months’ field incubation) were used the results suggested independence of canker development on a single shoot. We conclude that apparent aggregation of canker lesions on individual shoots is likely to originate from host responses. Such aggregation of canker lesions on individual shoots should be taken into consideration for field disease assessment and management.","PeriodicalId":19180,"journal":{"name":"New Zealand Plant Protection","volume":"99 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2021-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86424614","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}