Magazine Articles | Australian Banana Growers

Flood of concern over TR4

Two global experts on Panama Tropical Race 4 (TR4) have advised on control measures for North Queensland and warned the upcoming wet season is a danger period. Professor Altus Viljoen, Chairman of Plant Pathology at South Africa’s Stellenbosch University in South Africa, and Taiwan Banana…

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Curbing your N-thusiasm

Losses of Nitrogen continue to be a major environmental issue across agriculture. Can controlled-release fertilisers help banana farmers achieve best-practice targets? By Jeff Daniells, John Armour, Christina Mortimore and Stewart Lindsay Targets set in the Reef Plan 2050 to improve water quality in the…

Australian Bananas Magazine Magazine Articles

Containment the priority

Tracing and surveillance work is a priority for the current phase of the TR4 response with a focus on properties found to have links to the first infested property, TR4 Response Program Leader Rebecca Sapuppo said. “The aim of the surveillance program is to detect…

Australian Bananas Magazine Magazine Articles

India’s Panama Puzzle

Panama Race 1 isn’t supposed to infect Cavendish banana plants. So why is it killing them in an Indian growing district? Dr Thangavelu (Thanga) Raman and Jeff Daniells report on Race 1 causing widespread disease in Cavendish and research into biological controls. It was in…

Australian Bananas Magazine Magazine Articles

Sharon loves the banana culture

After 30 years in banana research, Maroochy-based Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries Senior Principal Scientist Sharon Hamill has been part of banana science advances, including in tissue culture. Sharon answers our ten life-science questions. What got you interested in the banana industry? Working in…

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New topics in the wet tropics

French agriculture student Kévin de Cozar was looking for work experience in tropical crop protection when he came to North Queensland. Unexpectedly, he got an insight into one of Australia’s biggest crop-protection issues, Panama TR4. Kévin answers our Life Science questions. Kévin, why did you choose to come…

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TR4 like a bolt from the blue

Lightning strikes frequently hit banana plants in North Queensland causing leaf damage that looks similar to TR4 symptoms. Growers are urged to report all suspect plants and not assume electrical storms are the cause of damage. Visiting Montpellier SupAgro University student Kévin de Cozar reports. After an electrical…

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