Brevibacillus laterosporus (Bl), is an insecticidal bacterium recorded as toxic to a range of invertebrates after ingestion. Isolates of Bl, which were initially recovered from surface-sterilised cabbage (Brassica oleracea ...

The wheat bug, Nysius huttoni White, mainly reported as a pest of wheat and forage brassicas, is native to New Zealand. This pest has been accidentally introduced into The Netherland and Belgium during apple exports from ...

The majority of herbivorous insects are specialized feeders restricted to a plant family, genus, or species. The evolution of specialized insect–plant interactions is generally considered to be a result of trade-offs in ...

Field parasitism rates of the Argentine stem weevil Listronotus bonariensis (Kuschel; Coleoptera: Curculionidae) by Microctonus hyperodae Loan (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) are known to vary according to different host Lolium ...

Invasive species present significant threats to global agriculture, although how the magnitude and distribution of the threats vary between countries and regions remains unclear. Here, we present an analysis of almost 1,300 ...

Blackleg is a disease caused by several species of Pectobacterium that results in losses to potato crops worldwide. Here, we report the draft genomes of three taxonomically and geographically distinct blackleg-causing ...

To protect productive grasslands from pests and diseases, effective pre- and at-border planning and interventions are necessary. Biosecurity failure inevitably requires expensive and difficult eradication, or long-term and ...

The number of non-native plant species established outside of cultivation in the New Zealand archipelago is higher than for any other islands worldwide. Faced with this scale of plant invasions, there has been considerable ...

New Zealand’s intensive pastures, comprised almost entirely introduced Lolium L. and Trifolium L. species, are arguably the most productive grazing lands in the world. However, these areas are vulnerable to destructive ...

Soil-borne plant pathogens such as Rhizoctonia solani (Kuhn), Pythium ultimum (Trow) and Sclerotinia trifoliorum (Eriks) can reduce grass and forage legume establishment. The potential for biocontrol of these pathogens by ...