Down the pan
How about I start this week’s blog with a question……what is the common link between the newly-constructed toilet block in Kithimu market place and Maize streak virus (MSV)?
Crop monitoring from space
The USDA Agricultural Research Service, funded by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), is developing a computer model to map evapotranspiration data from Landsat satellites, which can be used to remotely assess crop health. The US Geological Survey Landsat satellites have been in orbit since 1972.…
Update: New Pest & Disease Records (05 March 12)
We’ve selected a few of the latest new geographic, host and species records for plant pests and diseases from CAB Abstracts. Records this fortnight include the first time the sapote fruit fly has been found on citrus in Brazil, Fusarium species causing cucumber rot in Iran, and a new species of nematode discovered in India.
Puddles of pests: why the weather really matters
Weather – an integral part of farming ©Paul Dickson While folklore has worked well for many farmers over the years, watching out for red skies or the wind changing direction isn’t always convenient, and a little more notice of hurricanes and tropical storms is usually appreciated. With recent stories of rain beating down on mangoes in…
Update: Plant Health News (29 Feb 12)
Here’s a taste of some of the latest news stories about plant health, including dehydrated weevils, bananas saved from nematode attack, and how weeds and diseases work together to take down sweetcorn. Click on the link to read more of the latest plant health news!
Clustering to make a difference
Claire Beverley from the Plantwise knowledge bank has been visiting Kenya, find out what she has been up to in her latest blog post! ———————————————————————————————————————————————————- I imagine there are few sights as breath-taking as the Rift Valley, so on Thursday I was pleased that we stopped for a few minutes on our way to Nakuru.…
Getting Older Quicker: Wheat’s New Ageing Problem
Many of us dislike getting older, but you can usually predict how it will go: next year you expect to be 1 year older and you expect your body to be 1 year older. But what if instead of continually growing over a year, your body instead decided to grow for 6 months and then stop…
Leaf miner becomes vine connoisseur
Leaf miners have an eclectic palate between them, enjoying everything from sweet potatoes to coconuts and cashews. It appears that at some point they decided that something was missing – perhaps a fine wine to wash it all down? After intensive studying of diet, morphology and DNA barcoding, it has been revealed that a mystery moth…
Shouting out about plant clinics
Plantwise works with in-country agencies to set up plant clinics, which farmers can attend with a sample of their affected crops to obtain a diagnosis and treatment advice. Plant clinics are often run in larger towns or villages, and farmers can travel many miles to talk to a plant doctor to solve their crop problems.…
Update: New Pest & Disease Records (21 Feb 12)
We’ve selected a few of the latest new geographic, host and species records for plant pests and diseases from CAB Abstracts. Records this fortnight include a new, unnamed virus infecting tomatoes and Euphorbia species in Venezuela; first reports of watermelon viruses in Palestine and Serbia; and a phytoplasma that infects prickly pear being found in…