Plant Protection science 🌱🦠🔬

How citrus greening affects citrus industry?🍋🍊🌱🪴🌳🚜

🍊Citrus Huanglongbing, previously known as Citrus Greening Disease is a highly destructive and incurable bacterial disease that affects citrus plants.

🦠The disease is caused by the bacterium Candidatus Liberibacter asiaticus, which is primarily transmitted mostly by the Asian citrus psyllid (Diaphorina citri).

🍋The disease can affect various citrus species, including oranges, mandarins, lemons, limes, and grapefruits.

🌱The disease causes a range of symptoms, including yellowing of leaves (mottling), blotchy and asymmetrical patterns on leaves, misshapen, small, and bitter-tasting fruit, premature fruit drop, and dieback of branches.

🌳Infected trees gradually decline in health, leading to reduced fruit production and eventual tree death.

🦗The disease can be transmitted when the vector insect, the Asian citrus psyllid acquires the bacterium during feeding on HLB infected citrus plants. During feeding, the bacterium enters the psyllid's body and infects its internal tissues.

🔎Once infected, the bacterium multiplies within the psyllid's body and moves through its circulatory system.

🔄When the infected Asian citrus psyllid feeds on a healthy citrus plant to obtain nutrients, it releases the bacterium from its salivary glands into the plant's vascular system. The bacterium then spreads throughout the plant, affecting its various tissues and organs.

🪴The disease can also be spread through the movement of infected plant material and grafting of infected buds or branches onto healthy trees.

🧪Given the severity of the disease, early detection, quarantine measures, insect vector control and immediate action are crucial in preventing the spread of citrus greening disease.

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The amazing world of mycorrhizal fungi in a timelapse 📹🕕⌛️

🍄Most mycorrhizal fungi depend heavily on plant photosynthate to meet their energy requirements.

🌱Mycorrhizas are beneficial fungi growing in association with plant roots, and exist by taking sugars from plants 'in exchange' for moisture and nutrients gathered from the soil by the fungal strands. The mycorrhizas greatly increase the absorptive area of a plant, acting as extensions to the root system.

📍There are many abiotic factors that affect the activity of mycorrhizal fungi, including soil fertility, temperature, pH, soil moisture and aeration, soil type, salinity, plant readiness for infection, soil organic matter, and others.

🦠When applied to soil, they can start growing into the plant root and will take about four weeks to establishe the symbiotic relationship. Though it varies by plant species, growing protocol, etc., it generally takes about eight weeks for benefits to become visible in the field.

🚜Other ways to increase mycorrhizal fungi in the soil, some of which include reduced tillage, using cover crops, polyculture, planting mycorrhizal friendly crops, increasing soil organic matter, avoid usage of fertilizers and responsible use of crop protection products.

🔎Many mycorrhizal fungi are obligately symbiotic and therefore are unable to survive in nature for extended periods of time without their host. Because the relationship between the fungus and the plant is symbiotic, both members of the relationship obtain a benefit from each other.


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🪲Over the years, control of many econonomically important insect pests are achieved through in wide array of options that are suitable to farmer's convenience and preferences.

🧪The introduction of alternative insect control measures like use of entomopathogenic fungi has drawn increasing attention and popularity amongst growers.

🦠Entomopathogenic fungi are group of soil borne microorganisms that attacks and kills insects and other arthropods.

🌱The most popular strains of these fungis belong to the genera Beauveria, Metarhizium, Isaria, Hirsutella, and Lecanicillium.

🌱Once came contact with the insects, it adheres to their cuticle and penetrates their body. Then the fungus starts to grow and multiply.

🪴However, the field efficacy of these products are usually being questioned for consistency and practicability leading to low adoption rate.

♻️In order to address challenges on the formulation associated to its field applications, here are some recommendations:

📍Focus on stabilizing the fungal spores to extend shelf life. Encapsulating spores in protective coatings or using stabilizing agents can enhance viability and effectiveness over time.

📍Incorporate UV protectants into formulations to shield fungal spores from harmful ultraviolet (UV) radiation, which can reduce their viability when applied outdoors.

📍Develop formulations with improved adhesion to insect cuticles and substrates. Add surfactants or adhesion promoters to enhance spore attachment and spread on the target pests.

📍Modify formulations to withstand a wider range of temperatures, allowing the fungi to remain effective under varying environmental conditions.

📍Improve rainfastness by designing formulations that resist washing away during rain events, ensuring prolonged efficacy.

📍Test compatibility with commonly used pesticides and fertilizers to create integrated pest management solutions that can be used in combination with other products.

📚Related information: https://lnkd.in/gpvC5eMJ

📸Image details: Image: https://lnkd.in/gdSPM6Pv
Insects infected with Metarhizium strains showing sporulation on cadavers. (A) Melanoplus femurrubrum infected with wild type Metarhizium acridum Ma324. Galleria mellonella infected with transgenic Ma324-Mest1 (B) and wild type Metarhizium robertsii Mr2575 (C). Manduca sexta infected with transgenic M. acridum Ma324-Mest1 (D) and wild type M. robertsii Mr2575 (E).

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Fighting pathogenic fungi with great help from little friends 🦠🔬

📚 Rhizoctonia solan is a soil-borne phytopathogenic fungus with a wide range of hosts (causes diseases of over 200 plant species) that contribute to significant crop yield losses worldwide.

👨🌾 Besides the introduction of certain agronomic practices (e.g. crop rotation), use of resistant cultivars, and chemical pesticides, specific microorganisms can be applied as biocontrol agents to manage R. solani.

🦠 Due to its broad range of antibiotic-producing abilities (including lipopeptides, antibiotics and enzymes), Bacillus spp. is widely used against the pathogen.

🔃 Besides the direct biocontrol effect, Bacillus also competes with pathogenic fungi for space and nutrients.

🧪 Several Bacillus spp.-based bio-pesticides (originating from B. subtilis, B. amyloliquefaciens and B. pumilus) have been commercialized for the effective management of R. solani.

Video: timelapse showing inhibition of the R. solani growth by Bacillus spp. inoculant (credits: Plant Pathology).
#soil #biology #agriculture #farming