PlantwisePlus Blog

Scientists have identified a gene that encodes resistance to the fungus like-pathogen causing root rot disease in peppers © Gerald Holmes (CC BY-NC).

Here’s a taste of some of the latest stories about plant health, including the discovery of a microbe that could help control rice blast, concern over the effects of erratic rainfall on crops in Somalia and the discovery of a gene encoding resistance to stem and fruit rot of pepper.

Click on the link to read more of the latest plant health news!

• Blunting rice disease
  EurekAlert! – Agriculture, 2^nd June 2014
• Somalia: Late, erratic rainfall raises concerns about harvest prospects and food security
  FAO News – Agriculture & crops, 2^nd June 2014
• Costa Rican banana industry unites to block Panama disease
  Fresh Fruit Portal, 30^th May 2014
• 3,000 rice genome sequences made publicly available on World Hunger Day
  EurekAlert – Agriculture, 28^th May 2014
• Bringing science, business, visionaries and politics together for sustainable food systems
  Bioversity International, 28^th May 2014
• Scientists Identify Disease Resistance Gene in Pepper
  Crop Biotech Update, 28^th May 2014
• Resilience critical to end hunger and undernutrition by 2025
  IFPRI info, 23^rd May 2014
• Honduras: Citrus crops increase despite disease affecting plantations
  Fresh Plaza, 22^nd May 2014
• Africa: Progress Reported in Global Food and Nutrition Security, but Significant Challenges Lie Ahead
  AllAfrica News: Food and Agriculture, 20^th May 2014
• Stakeholders recommend solution to challenges in Ghana’s citrus industry
  Modern Ghana, 20^th May 2014

See more plant health news on the Plantwise Knowledge Bank.

If there’s another news story you’d like to highlight, please post a comment below.