CABI-led £1.6 million collaboration helps reduce China’s reliance on harmful pesticides

Close up of a locust on a white background
A CABI-led project involving an international team of remote sensing and plant protection experts is helping China reduce its reliance on harmful pesticides to fight crop pests and diseases including yellow rust fungal disease of wheat and locusts. The £1.6 million STFC Newton Agri-Tech Fund-financed project is leaving a lasting legacy in helping the Chinese Government…
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Update: New Pest & Disease Records (07 May 2019)

Close up of a pink orchid flower
We’ve selected a few of the latest new geographic, host and species records for plant pests and diseases from CAB Abstracts. Records this month include the first report of Pratylenchus neglectus on maize in Hungary, the first report of Cecidochares connexa parasitism in West Africa and a report on Phalaenopsis petal spot disease in Taiwan.
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Artificial Intelligence in Africa: Google’s new AI centre in Ghana

Chinyunyu Plant Clinic in Rufunsa district, Zambia.
Google’s first artificial intelligence (AI) lab in Africa has opened in Accra, Ghana. The tech giant aims to support researchers with the tools and environment necessary to develop AI products to solve numerous problems faced across the continent within the agriculture sector.
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It’s here: the new Plantwise Knowledge Bank!

screenshot of the Plantwise Knowledge Bank homepage
We are pleased to announce the release of the newly designed and dynamic Plantwise Knowledge Bank. The new website is now mobile responsive and has a cleaner, more user-friendly homepage. Our improved design allows for easier navigation and its responsive layout has made it suitable for desktop, mobiles and tablets.
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Test your plant health knowledge with the plant doctor quiz

Birdseye view of a plant clinic in Peru. A plant farmer gives advice to a farmer on a crop sample.
>> Latest quiz just added Plantwise plant doctors are at the heart of our plant clinic network providing advice and information to farmers, logging their data for the Plantwise Knowledge Bank, and always adapting to new outbreaks and technologies. Think you’ve got what it takes to be a plant doctor? Take our online quiz and…
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“We the women can do it.” Meet Jacinta, a farmer from Bolivia

In a new video, Plantwise follows the life of Jacinta Delgadillo, a farmer from Comarapa, Bolivia. Jacinta and her family grow beans, peppers, and other crops for food and to generate an income. When the crops are attacked by pests and diseases, Jacinta uses her local plant clinic to gain knowledge on how to better…
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Controlling whiteflies: How marigold is helping to promote safer alternatives for pest management

Close-up of a fiery orange marigold flower
In a recently published study, researchers have identified the natural insect repelling chemical produced by marigold, reinforcing what farmers have culturally used for years as a tool to prevent or reduce whitefly infestations.
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Female farmers and extension workers should take the lead in reducing gender inequality in agriculture

woman making bundles of wheat
A CABI-led study which compares male and female perceptions of access to and use of agricultural advisory services to help improve yields says women should take a lead role in helping to reduce inequalities which hinder their contribution to farming. Julien Lamontagne-Godwin, lead author of a new paper, published open access in the Journal of Agricultural Education…
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Maize lethal necrosis disease on the decline in Kenya

Maize field
Plant clinic data collected by Plantwise countries in East Africa has corroborated a statement from the International Maize and Wheat Improvement Center (CIMMYT) which said maize lethal necrosis disease (MLN) is “under control but not eradicated”.
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Meeting the needs of women farmers in Pakistan

A women-only plant clinic in Pakistan; a group of women gather round extension workers
Globally, women represent 43% of the agricultural labour force but they have less access than men to credit, education, land ownership, high quality inputs, and rural advisory services. Agriculture can be a powerful pathway out of poverty but without fair access to these things, women aren’t always in a position to fully benefit.
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