Biosecurity Commons^™

Environmental Weed Risk Assessment Protocol For Growing Non-Indigenous Plants In The Western Australian Rangelands, Geoff A. Moore Mr, Christine Munday Ms, Papori Barua Dr

Bulletins 4000 -

This bulletin is a post-border environmental weed risk assessment (WRA) protocol which is based on the Environmental WRA Protocol developed for the Future Farm Industries Co-operative Research Centre (FFI CRC), but with some changes to reflect the different environment and objectives.

The WRA protocol was developed specifically as a post-border assessment of non-indigenous species that may have agricultural value in the WA rangelands and the risk that they may become environmental weeds. Weeds can occur in many land-use systems including agriculture, horticulture and forestry; however, the focus of this protocol is on the risk that non-indigenous agricultural plants may become …

Insecticide Resistance In Australian Spodoptera Frugiperda (J.E. Smith) And Development Of Testing Procedures For Resistance Surveillance, Lisa Bird, Melina M. Miles, Adam Quade, Helen Spafford

Biosecurity Research Articles

Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith) is a highly invasive noctuid pest first reported in northern Australia during early 2020. To document current status of resistance in S. frugiperda in Australia, insecticide toxicity was tested in field populations collected during the first year of establishment, between March 2020 and March 2021. Dose-response was measured by larval bioassay in 11 populations of S. frugiperda and a susceptible laboratory strain of Helicoverpa armigera. Emamectin benzoate was the most efficacious insecticide (LC50 0.023μg/ml) followed by chlorantraniliprole (LC50 0.055μg/ml), spinetoram (LC50 0.098μg/ml), spinosad (LC50 0.526μg/ml), and methoxyfenozide (1.413μg/ml). Indoxacarb was the least toxic …

Virus Diseases Of Cereal And Oilseed Crops In Australia: Current Position And Future Challenges, Roger Jones, Murray Sharman, Piotr Trebicki, Solomon Maina, Benjamin S. Congdon

Biosecurity Research Articles

This review summarizes research on virus diseases of cereals and oilseeds in Australia since the 1950s. All viruses known to infect the diverse range of cereal and oilseed crops grown in the continent’s temperate, Mediterranean, subtropical and tropical cropping regions are included. Viruses that occur commonly and have potential to cause the greatest seed yield and quality losses are described in detail, focusing on their biology, epidemiology and management. These are: barley yellow dwarf virus, cereal yellow dwarf virus and wheat streak mosaic virus in wheat, barley, oats, triticale and rye; Johnsongrass mosaic virus in sorghum, maize, sweet corn and …

Grains, Seeds And Hay Industry Funding Scheme Annual Report 2020/2021, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Funding Scheme (IFS) has been operating since 2010 to address biosecurity threats relevant to Western Australia’s (WA) grains, seeds and hay industry. The Scheme was established under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 to enable growers to identify the pest and disease priorities at a whole-of-industry level and raise funds for activities to address these priorities.

There are currently three Industry Funding Schemes in operation. In addition to the Grains, Seeds and Hay IFS, there is a Cattle IFS and a Sheep and Goat IFS. The three IFSs operate in a similar manner. …

Virulence Assessment Of Australian Pyrenophora Tritici-Repentis Isolates, Pao Theen See, Kefei Chen, Kalai A. Marathamuthu, Nikki Schultz, Manisha Shankar, Caroline S. Moffat

Biosecurity Research Articles

The virulence of 57 Australian isolates of Pyrenophora tritici-repentis (Ptr), a necrotrophic fungal pathogen responsible for the major wheat disease tan spot, was assessed through plant infection assays. Isolates collected from the northern, southern, and western wheat-cropping regions of Australia were evaluated against 16 Australian bread wheat cultivars under controlled growth conditions. Following infection, the wheat panel displayed varying disease symptoms ranging from tiny necrotic specks to spreading chlorotic and necrotic lesions. Analysis of variance indicated that the wheat cultivar exhibited a greater effect on the disease response, explaining 62.7% of the variation, in comparison to the isolate …

Conservation Agriculture For Food Security And Climate Resilience In Nepal, Deepak R. Joshi, Rajan Ghimire, Tulsi Kharel, Umakant Mishrra, Sharon A. Clay

Agronomy, Horticulture and Plant Science Faculty Publications

Achieving the sustainable development goals of the United Nations requires innovations in agriculture and development of climate-smart and economically feasible approaches for smallholder farmers in developing countries. Historical climate data of Nepal, which include 116 yr since 1901, has shown an increasing trend for average temperature by 0.016 ˚C yr–1 whereas precipitation has shown a decreasing trend by 0.137 mm yr–1. Such weather trends could enhance glacier melt associated flooding, and delayed monsoon rainfalls negatively impacting the agricultural production. The Nepalese government is promoting conservation agriculture (CA) through development of low-cost technologies that can be used effectively in difficult terrains. …

Industry Funding Scheme Regulations: A Review Of Operation And Effectiveness, May 2021, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

Section 147 of the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 requires the Minister for Agriculture and Food to carry out a review of the operation and effectiveness of any regulations made for the purposes of establishing an Industry Funding Scheme (IFS) every five years.

In 2010, regulations establishing three IFSs commenced to address pest and disease threats relevant to Western Australia’s broadacre and pastoral cropping and livestock sectors. This report documents the second fifth-year anniversary statutory review of the following regulations:

• Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Industry Funding Scheme (Cattle) Regulations 2010

• Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Industry Funding Scheme …

Grains, Seeds And Hay Industry Funding Scheme Annual Report 2019/2020, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Funding Scheme (IFS) has been operating since 2010 to address biosecurity threats relevant to Western Australia’s (WA) grains, seeds and hay industry. The Scheme was established under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 to enable growers to identify the pest and disease priorities at a whole-of-industry level and raise funds for activities to address these priorities.

There are currently three Industry Funding Schemes in operation. In addition to the Grains, Seeds and Hay IFS, there is a Cattle IFS and a Sheep and Goat IFS. The three IFSs operate in a similar manner. …

Plant Diseases Impacting Oaten Hay Production In Australia - A Review, Kylie Chambers, Geoff J. Thomas

Bulletins 4000 -

In Australia, there are a range of fungal, bacterial and viral pathogens that infect oats, impacting on yield and quality of grain and hay crops. The overall impact of these diseases on oaten hay production is not well researched or understood, especially compared to that of other cereal crops. Export hay is evaluated on physical qualities such as stem thickness and greenness and nutritional qualities including water-soluble carbohydrates, neutral detergent fibre, acid detergent fibre and dry matter digestibility. The colour/ greenness of oaten hay can be reduced by disease lesions, chlorosis and saphrophytic fungi growing on dead tissue all of …

Skeleton Weed Program Review - A Review Undertaken For The Grains, Seeds And Hay Industry Funding Scheme Management Committee 2020, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

This review was undertaken in two stages. Stage 1 reviewed the Skeleton Weed Program and the global situation on skeleton weed. Stage 2 involved targeted stakeholder consultation to build on the information identified through Stage 1 and identify perceptions and attitudes amongst the Western Australian grain/seed/hay industry with regard to the Skeleton Weed Program (the program). The results of these two processes were used to formulate the key findings and recommendations by the Review Panel to assist the Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Funding Scheme (IFS) Management Committee in its decision-making.

Profitable Break Crops For Management Of Root Lesion Nematodes And Rhizoctonia Solani Ag8, Bec Swift, Alice Butler, Sarah Collins, Carla Wilkinson, Sean Kelly, Daniel Huberli, Vanessa Stewart, Jeremy Lemon, Paul Mattingley, Angelo Loi, Mario F. D'Antuono, Garren Knell

Biosecurity research reports

Aim

To investigate the most effective and profitable break crops in rotation with cereals (wheat) for growers with RLN and R. solani in the same paddock, a two-year (2018 & 2019) break-crop rotation trial was implemented in Dumbleyung and Grass Valley.

Key Messages

• Canola is not a break crop in paddocks if root lesion nematodes (RLN) and Rhizoctonia solani are both present
• Weed free legumes, pulses and pastures are the best options where RLN and R. solani co-exist in a paddock
• Cereals substantially increase RLN and R. solani levels while canola will also increase RLN

Analysis Of Mutations In West Australian Populations Of Blumeria Graminis F. Sp. Hordei Cyp51 Conferring Resistance To Dmi Fungicides, Madeline A. Tucker, Francisco J. Lopez-Ruiz, Hans J. Cools, Jonathon G L Mullins, Kithsiri W. Jayasena, Richard P. Oliver

Biosecurity Research Articles

BACKGROUND

Powdery mildew caused by Blumeria graminis f. sp. hordei (Bgh) is a constant threat to barley production but is generally well controlled through combinations of host genetics and fungicides. An epidemic of barley powdery mildew was observed from 2007 to 2013 in the West Australian grain belt.

RESULTS

We collected isolates across Australia, examined their sensitivity to demethylation inhibitor (DMI) fungicides and sequenced the Cyp51B target gene. Five amino acid substitutions were found, of which four were novel. The most resistant haplotypes increased in prevalence from 0% in 2009 to 16% in 2010 and 90% in 2011. …

Grains, Seeds And Hay Industry Funding Scheme Annual Report 2018/2019, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Funding Scheme (IFS) has been operating since 2010 to address biosecurity threats relevant to Western Australia’s (WA) grains, seeds and hay industry. The Scheme was established under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 to enable growers to identify the pest and disease priorities at a whole-of-industry level and raise funds for activities to address these priorities.

There are currently three Industry Funding Schemes in operation. In addition to the Grains, Seeds and Hay IFS, there is a Cattle IFS and a Sheep and Goat IFS. The three IFSs operate in a similar manner. …

Bedstraw Eradication Program: Annual Report To Grain Growers 2018/2019, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Management Committee (GSHIMC) believes the current program is delivering the best value for the funding provided and is achieving the project outcomes of containment and eradication.

Approved programs are developed annually for each infested property in consultation with GSHIMC, the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) and the landholders detailing management actions, estimated costs and timeframes of the agreed actions.

The two infested properties have now entered the final Release Phase of a nine-year eradication program. The program is implemented by DPIRD and includes six consecutive years of winter spray treatments, followed …

Application Of Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification In An Early Warning System For Epidemics Of An Externally Sourced Plant Virus, Benjamin S. Congdon, Paul Matson, Farhana Begum, Monica Kehoe, Brenda A. Coutts

Biosecurity Research Articles

Restricting Turnip yellows virus (TuYV) spread in canola (Brassica napus) crops often relies upon the application of systemic insecticides to protect young vulnerable plants from wide-scale green-peach aphid (GPA; Myzus persicae) colonization and subsequent virus infection. For these to be applied at the optimal time to ensure they prevent epidemics, growers would need to be forewarned of incoming viruliferous aphid migration and colonization. This study was conducted to field validate a loop-mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) protocol designed to detect TuYV in aphids caught on traps and develop an early warning system for TuYV epidemics. Double-sided yellow sticky traps were deployed …

Reporting Charcoal Rot In Chia And Developing A Susceptibility Assay, Reis M. Misaka, Hagop S. Atamian Dr., Julien Besnard Dr.

Student Scholar Symposium Abstracts and Posters

Chia (Salvia Hispanica) cross breeds were planted in the summer of 2018 with the intent of selective breeding for agricultural benefit. Preexisting pathogens in the soil caused 40-50% fatality of adult plants. This was surprising due to the precursory knowledge that chia has antibiotic and antifungal oils (Elshafie et. al. 2018); chia was only recently documented to be susceptible to Fusarium wilt (Fusarium oxysporum). The primary pathogen responsible was identified as Macrophomina phaseolina (aka charcoal rot); a widespread soilborne pathogen which has multiple commercial hosts (Su et. al. 2001).

M. phaesolina on wheat seed vector where used as …

Addressing The Challenges Facing Wheat Production: Nebraska And International Breeding Efforts, Sarah Blecha

Doctor of Plant Health Program: Dissertations and Student Research

Bread wheat, Triticum aestivum L., provides 20 percent of the global daily calorie intake. It is the third most important food crop, after rice and corn. Biotic challenges significantly reduce wheat yield; chemical control can be a solution but can be cost prohibitive for subsistence farmers. For many farmers, genetic resistance to biotic stresses can be the most cost effective solution.

The International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) and the Nebraska Small Grains Breeding Program have been addressing these wheat production challenges. ICARDA is part of an international research consortium to increase wheat yield and tolerance …

Grains, Seeds And Hay Industry Funding Scheme Annual Report 2017/2018, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Funding Scheme (IFS) has been operating since 2010 to address biosecurity threats relevant to Western Australia’s (WA) grains, seeds and hay industry. The Scheme was established under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 to enable growers to identify the pest and disease priorities at a whole-of-industry level and raise funds for activities to address these priorities.

There are currently three Industry Funding Schemes in operation. In addition to the Grains, Seeds and Hay IFS, there is a Cattle IFS and a Sheep and Goat IFS. The three IFSs operate in a similar manner. …

Skeleton Weed Program: Annual Report To Grain Growers 2017/2018, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Management Committee (GSHIMC) believes the current program is delivering the best value for the funding provided and is achieving the Project Outcomes of eradication (where possible), management (on infested sites), and limiting the spread of Skeleton weed across the cereal growing districts.

There has been a significant increase in the infested area of Skeleton weed in 2017/18. Most of this increase was in the eastern zone where wet conditions favoured Skeleton weed in late 2017.

Many landholders in these areas also had difficulty achieving “long term” control over summer and infested areas needed monitoring …

Bedstraw Eradication Program: Annual Report To Grain Growers 2017/2018, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Management Committee (GSHIMC) believes the current program is delivering the best value for the funding provided and is achieving the project outcomes of containment and eradication.

Approved programs are developed annually for each infested property in consultation with GSHIMC, the Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) and the landholders detailing management actions, estimated costs and timeframes of the agreed actions.

The two infested properties have now entered the final Release Phase of a nine year eradication program. The program is implemented by DPIRD and includes six consecutive years of winter spray treatments, …

Radical Social Ecology As Deep Pragmatism: A Call To The Abolition Of Systemic Dissonance And The Minimization Of Entropic Chaos, Arielle Brender

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper aims to shed light on the dissonance caused by the superimposition of Dominant Human Systems on Natural Systems. I highlight the synthetic nature of Dominant Human Systems as egoic and linguistic phenomenon manufactured by a mere portion of the human population, which renders them inherently oppressive unto peoples and landscapes whose wisdom were barred from the design process. In pursuing a radical pragmatic approach to mending the simultaneous oppression and destruction of the human being and the earth, I highlight the necessity of minimizing entropic chaos caused by excess energy expenditure, an essential feature of systems that aim …

Effect Of Increasing Levels Of Monosilicic Acid On Arsenic And Phosphorus Sorption In Soil, Flávia Bastos Agostinho

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Arsenic (As) accumulation in rice (Oryza sativa) grains has increased human’s daily intake. Studies have shown that arsenite is taken up through known silicon (Si) transporters in rice. Moreover, the availability of As in soil is affected by chemically similar ligands that have high affinity to oxides surfaces, such as Si and phosphorus (P). Studies were conducted to: (I) investigate the role of elevated levels of Si on the concentration of different As fractions in soil and on As uptake by rice; (II) evaluate the effect of increasing monosilicic acidconcentrations on As sorption and kinetics in soil; and …

Sequence Analysis Of The Potato Aphid Macrosiphum Euphorbiae Transcriptome Identified Two New Viruses, Marcella A. Texeira, Noa Sela, Hagop S. Atamian, Ergude Bao, Rita Chaudhury, Jacob Macwilliams, Jiangman He, Sophie Mantelin, Thomas Girke, Isgouhi Kaloshian

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

The potato aphid, Macrosiphum euphorbiae, is an important agricultural pest that causes economic losses to potato and tomato production. To establish the transcriptome for this aphid, RNA-Seq libraries constructed from aphids maintained on tomato plants were used in Illumina sequencing generating 52.6 million 75±105 bp paired-end reads. The reads were assembled using Velvet/Oases software with SEED preprocessing resulting in 22,137 contigs with an N50 value of 2,003bp. After removal of contigs from tomato host origin, 20,254 contigs were annotated using BLASTx searches against the non-redundant protein database from the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) as well as IntereProScan. …

Grains, Seeds And Hay Industry Funding Scheme Annual Report 2016/2017, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Funding Scheme (IFS) has been operating since 2010 to address biosecurity threats relevant to Western Australia’s (WA) grains, seeds and hay industry. The Scheme was established under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 to enable growers to identify the pest and disease priorities at a whole-of-industry level and raise funds for activities to address these priorities.

There are currently three Industry Funding Schemes in operation. In addition to the Grains, Seeds and Hay IFS, there is a Cattle IFS and a Sheep and Goat IFS. The three IFSs operate in a similar manner. …

Loci On Chromosomes 1a And 2a Affect Resistance To Tan (Yellow) Spot In Wheat Populations Not Segregating For Tsn1, Manisha Shankar, Dorthe Jorgensen, Julian Taylor, Ken J. Chalmers, Rebecca Fox, Grant J. Hollaway, Stephen M. Neate, Mark S. Mclean, Elysia Vassos, Hossein Golzar, Rob Loughman, Diane E. Mather

Biosecurity Research Articles

Tan spot (syn. yellow spot and yellow leaf spot) caused by Pyrenophora tritici-repentis is an important foliar disease of wheat in Australia. Few resistance genes have been mapped in Australian germplasm and only one, known as tsn1 located on chromosome 5B, is known in Australian breeding programs. This gene confers insensitivity to the fungal effector ToxA. The main aim of this study was to map novel resistance loci in two populations: Calingiri/Wyalkatchem, which is fixed for the ToxA-insensitivity allele tsn1, and IGW2574/Annuello, which is fixed for the ToxA-sensitivity allele Tsn1. A second aim was to combine …

Skeleton Weed Program: Annual Report To Grain Growers 2016/2017, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity published reports

All program milestones have been met and the program has been delivered under budget.

As stated in the 2015/16 Annual Report – the program budget has been set at its current level of (approximately) $3.5m for the foreseeable future and program activities need to be framed within this parameter.

The Grains, Seeds and Hay Industry Management Committee (GSH IMC) believes the current program is delivering the best value for the funding provided and is achieving the Project Outcomes of eradication (where possible), management (on infested sites), and limiting the spread of skeleton weed across the wheatbelt.

There has been no …

Rabbit Control: Bait Stations, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity factsheets

This factsheet provides information on using bait stations for rabbit control.

Biological control agents such as the myxoma virus (myxomatosis), and rabbit haemorraghic disease virus (RHDV) or rabbit calicivirus disease, will not provide ‘magic bullets’ for reducing the impact of rabbits on agricultural production and the environment. Biological agents are more effective when they form part of an integrated approach to rabbit control. An integrated approach should use all available control options, including biological control, the use of vertebrate pesticides, shooting, and trapping programs. Control programs are most effective when they include the greatest number of properties possible (that is, …

Germplasm Enhancement For Resistance To Pyrenophora Tritici-Repentis In Wheat, Manisha Shankar, Diane E. Mather, Dorthe Jorgensen, Hossein Golzar, Ken J. Chalmers, Grant J. Hollaway, Mark S. Mclean, Stephen M. Neate, Rob Loughman

Conference papers and presentations

Yellow spot (syn. tan spot), caused by Pyrenophora tritici-repentis, is an important foliar disease of wheat in Australia that causes losses exceeding 50 % when conditions are favourable for disease development. Although good progress has been made internationally to understand yellow spot resistance, relatively few resistance genes have been identified and mapped in Australian germplasm and only one (tsn1 on chromosome 5BL) is in general and known use in Australian breeding programs. Although tsn1 is an important yellow spot resistance gene, it doesn’t explain the full spectrum of resistance and there is a significant opportunity to enhance expression …

Development Of Genetic Ssr Markers In Blumeria Graminis F. Sp. Hordei And Application To Isolates From Australia, Madeline Tucker, C S. Moffat, Simon R. Ellwood, K C. Tan, Kithsiri Jayasena, Richard P. Oliver

Biosecurity Research Articles

The barley powdery mildew pathogen, Blumeria graminis f. sp. hordei (Bgh), exists in numerous haplotypes and displays significant differences in fungicide sensitivity. It causes considerable yield losses throughout the world. Microsatellite SSRs are useful tools to study the population level and biogeographic aspects of intraspecific diversity, but so far none have been defined for Bgh. Here, eight polymorphic microsatellite loci were identified and characterized. Primer pairs amplifying the loci were then applied to 111 isolates of Bgh from Australia. The number of alleles per locus ranged from 4 to 13, and Nei's genetic diversity ranged from 0·25 to 0·76. The …

Agriculture And Food In Crisis: Conflict, Resistance, And Renewal [Book Review], Charles A. Francis

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Edited by Fred Magdoff and Brian Tokar. 2010. Monthly Review Press, New York, New York, United States. 348 p. Paperback, cloth US$ 75.00, paper US$ 18.95, ISBN-13 978-1-58367-226-6.

That doubling of food production over the next four decades will be needed to adequately nourish our human population is not news, but the incredible steps essential to achieve that goal and their political and social implications are less well reported. In this series of 16 essays edited by Fred Magdoff and Brian Tokar, several thoughtful specialists in global food issues explore the historical, biological, economic, energy, political and social dimensions of …