Patho Blitz - an Atherton Tableland first

Abstract

The aim of Patho Blitz was to develop the skills of early to mid-career pathologists and diagnosticians in various aspects of collecting and processing diseased plant specimens. Funding for the workshop was provided by the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources (DAWR), and convened by staff at the Mareeba Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, Queensland (DAF). Based on the Bush Blitz (www.bushblitz.org.au) concept, twenty six scientists from around Australia converged on the Atherton Tablelands (north Queensland) for the 5-day blitz in May, 2019. The location provided a diverse range of ecosystems within a 50km radius of home base. Sites surveyed included natural grassland, rainforest, horticultural, forestry and broad acre cropping systems. Mornings were spent out in the field collecting, followed by processing and curation of samples collected in the afternoons, conducted in a make-shift laboratory. Specialists in mycology, bacteriology, virology (including phytoplasmas) and botany were on hand, together with local pathologists and agronomists with in-depth knowledge of the region and cropping systems. The workshop provided a unique opportunity for those participants that were purely laboratory based or with limited to no field experience. The format allowed participants to hone their field skills in plant disease recognition, sample collection and handling in addition to the curation of samples and laboratory assessment (microscopy and isolation). A session in the use of Loop mediated isothermal amplification (LAMP) as a field diagnostic tool was conducted using bacterial wilt (Ralstonia pseudosolanacearum) and Queensland Fruit fly as case studies. In total, 202 specimens were collected of which 116 were fungal samples, including 19 entomopathogenic fungi. A further 60 suspected virus and 23 phytoplasma samples were collected for further assessment, along with 3 samples for bacterial determination. All of the fungal samples were lodged in the Queensland Plant Pathology Herbarium (BRIP).