Your Levy at Work

November Pest of the Month: Bacterial brown spot

Wednesday, 4 November 2020

Small (3-8mm diameter) tan spots with reddish-brown margins develop on leaves. The spots are usually circular but may be angular when bordered by leaf veins. Spots are often surrounded by a light green to yellow halo, the center of the spots often dry and fall out, leaving a shot-hole appearance, leafs often tear from spot to spot.

On stems, brown, sunken spots or lesions with reddish edges may form. On pods, circular dark-green spots with a water-soaked appearance occur, later becoming enlarged and sunken. If the pods are infected early, they may become twisted or bent where lesions develop.

UPDATE: Vegetable leafminer resource bundle

by Levy Communications • NGI Updates

Monday, 26 October 2020

Levy-funded project ‘Research, Development and Extension program for control, eradication and preparedness of vegetable leafminer’ (MT16004) is working towards understanding the full impact an infestation of vegetable leafminer species could have on the Australian horticulture sector and where management practices could be put in place.

Together, project lead cesar, and project partners Plant Health Australia, the University of Melbourne, Northern Australia Quarantine Strategy (NAQS) and AUSVEG have been busy developing a suite of useful resources that can be utilised by the nursery industry to ensure the risk of exotic vegetable leafminer incursion is minimised.

2020 Nursery Statistics Survey is underway

by Levy Communications • NGI Updates

Thursday, 15 October 2020

Collection for the 2020 Nursery Industry Statistics survey is now underway, and growers are urged to participate.

The importance of the 2019/2020 survey can not be understated. COVID-19 restrictions have spurred an already growing trend within Australia for more and better indoor and outdoor greenspaces. It is essential for the industry to reliably capture the market impact of this time to demonstrate the benefits of greenlife to Governments.

From October to early December, a team from independent research agency Down To Earth Research (DTER) will be contacting growers across Australia to conduct interviews and collect key business data for the 2019/20 financial.

That’s a wrap on the QDAF pest and disease webinar series

by Levy Communications • NGI Updates

Wednesday, 14 October 2020

The Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (QDAF) pest and disease webinar series has now concluded. Recordings of each of the pest and disease webinars are available via the GIA YouTube channel here.

Growers and production staff were invited to attend a total of four online events, aiming to enhance the Australian nursery industry’s biosecurity measures by showcasing new pest and disease contingency plans and relaying new and updated information.

The final two webinars offered key insights and advice on effective alternatives to neonicotinoid insecticides and the effect of climate change on pest populations.

UPDATE: Northern Territory seeks eradication status for citrus canker

by Levy Communications • NGI Updates

Thursday, 8 October 2020

Citrus canker presents a large biosecurity threat to the citrus industry, destroying crops and affecting trade.

Citrus canker was detected in the Northern Territory in 2018, which was the first time it had been detected since it was eradicated from Queensland in 2009.

Following this incursion, this contagious bacterial disease affected both Western Australia and the Northern Territory, with Western Australia managing to successfully eradicate the disease. The Northern Territory is on the right track, implementing the updated 2020 National Response Plan to prove it’s free of citrus canker.

How your levy funds supported the industry’s COVID-19 marketing response

by Levy Communications • NGI Updates

Thursday, 8 October 2020

Although COVID-19 presented many challenges, the nursery marketing program adapted to the change in consumer behaviours through the development of the COVID-19 campaign, continuing to promote the benefits of greenlife and how people could experience these benefits during lockdown and beyond.

Commencing in late March 2020, the campaign set out to support industry differently through activities undertaken by the Greener Spaces Better Places and Plant Life Balance programs, including:

The Government ‘Pulse Check’ research project
Dedicated public relations and media campaigns focusing on messages related to COVID-19
Dedicated Plant Life Balance digital and social media content
Development of resources dedicated to assisting retailers boost sales during and post-COVID-19

The campaigns were hugely successful with highlights including:

Over 100 urban greening practitioner attending a Greener Spaces Better Places webinar series
A media campaign with a reach of 15.6 million Australians
A social media campaign with a reach 3.2 million Australians reached an increase in website visits of 110%

Keep reading for more details on the COVID-19 campaign.