NGI Updates

Dutch elm disease

Month: April

Disease: Dutch elm disease – Ophiostoma spp.

Importance: Exotic – Australia has one of the best elm tree collections in the world because most other countries have had theirs devastated by Dutch elm disease (DED).

Symptoms: DED is a vascular wilt disease and symptoms vary depending on whether trees were infected through beetle feeding wounds or through root grafts. Where beetles are involved, trees show wilting, curling and yellowing of one or more branches at the top of the tree. If the disease progresses rapidly, infected trees may only survive for two to three years, or they may survive for years with the number of wilted branches increasing annually.

Transmission: There are many bark beetles which are potential vectors of DED spores, but only a few are regarded as significant vectors. It may be spread by root grafts between closely planted elm trees.

Host range: Most Ulmus spp. from Europe and North America are highly susceptible. Some Asian elms have a greater level of resistance. DED has been recorded on the genus Zelkova but it is highly resistant. More

More than 50 delegates from across the nursery supply chain had an opportunity to tour local production nurseries and landscape suppliers on the NGIA wholesale tour ahead of the national conference held in Hobart last month.

Tibballs Nursery, Granton Plants, Horticultural and Landscape Supplies and Westland Nurseries opened their doors to conference delegates providing a first-hand insight into their businesses and the broader operating environment in Tasmania.

The tours – both wholesale and retail – are an important prelude to the NGIA national conference held every two years and provide a valuable platform for local businesses to share knowledge, showcase innovative practices and discuss issues faced and solved.

On this year’s wholesale tour, delegates visited Tibballs Nursery, a third-generation family owned wholesale business established in 1946. The business primarily grows flower and vegetable seedlings, along with a diverse range of edible and ornamental plants.

More

Catherine Wundele

The recently held International Women’s Day serves as a timely reminder that there are great opportunities for women to pursue in their given careers, particularly when it comes to mentoring and encouraging leadership, management and communication skills for other women in business.

Catherine Wundele plans to pursue this very opportunity as a scholarship recipient of the Executive Ready leadership program, run by Women & Leadership Australia (WLA) in partnership with Hort Innovation.

Currently the admin and HR Manager at Plant Growers Australia production nursery in Wonga Park, Victoria, Catherine will shortly begin an intensive seven-month professional development program, covering topics including team dynamics, driving performance, communication and influence and leading innovation and change.

Plant Growers Australia production nursery employs more than 80 staff, and produces more than 300 lines of native and exotic varieties that are supplied to independent and larger retail chains across Australia.

As the only woman in a senior management role in the business, Catherine sees the program as an opportunity to build essential skills to progress her own career and the career of those around her. More

Registrations have opened for two free webinars to equip production nursery managers with the latest insights on sustainable pesticide usage and effective phytotoxicity management.

Hosted by Dr Andrew Manners from the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF), the following webinars are part of the nursery levy funded project Building the resilience and on-farm biosecurity capacity of the Australian production nursery industry (NY15002), a collaborative project between Nursery and Garden Industry Australia (NGIA), Horticulture Innovation and DAF. More

Downy mildew

Month: March

Disease: Downy mildew – various genera including Peronospora, Plasmopara, Bremia and others.

Symptoms: Symptoms vary on different plant hosts and include spots on leaves, stems and flower stalks which may range in colour from light green to yellow or red. The upper leaf surface can show chlorotic (yellow) patches, while the typical downy grey fungal growth can be seen (under humid conditions) on the underside of these patches. Severe infections can lead to leaf drop, shoot dieback and leaf rosetting. The infection can become systemic in some hosts causing stunting and yellowing of growing tissues.

Transmission: Air-borne spores are produced at night, generally on the undersides of leaves, and released in the morning as the air dries out. These spores are short lived and need water to germinate. The fungi can survive on contaminated soil, plant debris, seed or other propagating material and on weed hosts.

Favoured by: Leaves that are wet for long periods, when humidity is high and the weather cool (temperatures of 4^o – 27^o C depending on host). More

Zoe Palmer

If you are ready to advance your career, or know of an emerging leader in your business, now is the time to apply for the 2018 Green Industry Growing Leaders Program.

The Green Industry Growing Leaders Program is a four-month professional development course, funded by Hort Innovation and designed to equip the next generation of nursery and turf industry participants with stronger leadership skills to drive effective business change.

Zoe Palmer from Anderson Horticulture Pty Ltd, New South Wales, participated in the 2017 program and believes the course empowered her to receive a promotion to Nursery Manager.

“I needed to step-up into a managerial role and knew what I needed to do, but didn’t have the tools to do it. This program has given me the skills and confidence to make better decisions and manage the team more effectively,” said Ms Palmer. More