Dear Forest Pathologists,
A number of us have just returned from the 9th International Congress of Plant Pathology in Torino, Italy. This was a wonderful event and provided us with a good opportunity to catch up with each other and the latest happenings in plant and forest pathology. We also had the opportunity to have a meeting of the ISPP Forest Pathology Subject Matter Committee and go on a very interesting field trip to the Aosta Valley. We would like to once again thank all our Italian colleagues for their hospitality and all the hard work they put into making this a memorable experience!
The ISPP Forest Pathology Committee aims to ensure representation of Forest Pathology at ISPP, especially at the International Plant Pathology congresses. Furthermore it aims to ensure a forest pathology field tour at these international meetings, as well as facilitate communication between forest pathologists of the world, as well as between IUFRO and ISPP. For your information I have attached the minutes of the meeting held in Torino. It also includes a photo of all present at the meeting. I invite all forest pathologists to read through the minutes (they are short) and to participate in the committee to ensure appropriate representation of forest pathology. Any suggestions/comments by you on any of the topics would also be appreciated.
Kind regards,
Jolanda Roux
(as Chairperson: ISPP Forest Pathology Subject Matter Committee)
jolanda.roux(a)fabi.up.ac.za
Jolanda Roux (PhD)
Associate Professor
DST/NRF Centre of Excellence in Tree Health Biotechnology
Tree Protection Co-operative Programme (TPCP)
Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI)
University of Pretoria
Pretoria, 0002
South Africa
Email: jolanda.roux(a)fabi.up.ac.za
Tel. +27 12 420 3938/9
Fax: +27 12 420 3960
www.fabinet.up.ac.za ( http://www.fabinet.up.ac.za/ )
KEEPING TREES HEALTHY
Urban Tree Pathologist Position Description
The Morton Arboretum invites nominations and applications for a full
time Urban Tree Pathologist, to conduct innovative, practical and
comprehensive research on diseases of urban trees using a plant health
care approach.
S/he will establish an internationally recognized research program and
national leadership role in urban tree pathology and plant health care
that takes advantage of the Arboretum’s strategic location in the
Chicagoland metropolitan area. Research topics may include cultural,
chemical and biologically based management of pathogens; development of
forecasting and diagnostic tools, including molecular diagnostics;
predisposition of trees to biotic and abiotic disease development from
urban stress and climate change; invasive diseases; and/or related
subjects. Expectations include publishing in scientific, professional
and popular journals; obtaining extramural funding; working
collaboratively and effectively with Arboretum colleagues in research,
education, and living collections, and other scientists in the region;
contributing to the management of the Arboretum’s 900 acres of plant
collections and natural areas; interacting with plant health care
professionals; and supporting the Plant Clinic and Plant Health Care
Report. The Urban Tree Pathologist will work especially closely with
researchers in root biology, soil science, and stress physiology. There
are opportunities for collaboration in natural areas research; and
academic teaching and advising, with potentially adjunct faculty status
at area universities. Modern laboratory space, support staff, and
operating budget are provided.
Qualifications: Ph.D in plant pathology or closely related field;
training and demonstrated interest in applied plant pathology research;
strong background in experimental design; command of modern statistical
analytical methods and of appropriate general and specialized software;
a record of excellent written and oral communication, and interpersonal
skills; familiarity with regional woody plants, diseases and their
management, and an interest in root system diseases and symbionts is
strongly desired.
Review of applications will begin November 1, 2008, and will continue
until the position is filled. Applicants should send a letter of
application, curriculum vitae, statements of research and related
interests and experience, and contact information for three references
to: The Morton Arboretum, Human Resources, 4100 Illinois Route 53,
Lisle, IL 60532 or jobs(a)mortonarb.org. For further information or to
nominate candidates, please contact Dr. Gary Watson, at 630-719-2415 or
gwatson(a)mortonarb.org .
The Morton Arboretum is a 1,700-acre public botanical garden, featuring
one of the world’s most diverse collections of woody plants, over 900
acres of natural areas, a comprehensive research library, modern
laboratories and herbarium, and outreach education for professional and
public audiences. Research at the Arboretum has focused throughout its
85-year history on finding practical solutions to the challenges of
selecting and maintaining healthy trees in developed landscapes and
natural woodlands, and on communicating results to practicing
professionals and general public as well as the research community. The
three principal areas of emphasis in Research and related programs are
tree health, tree improvement, and woodland conservation. See
www.mortonarb.org. Equal Opportunity Employer.
Glen R. Stanosz, Ph. D.
Department of Plant Pathology
Department of Forest and Wildlife Ecology
University of Wisconsin-Madison
1630 Linden Drive
Madison, WI 53706
voice: 608-265-2863
fax: 608-263-2626
email: grs(a)plantpath.wisc.edu
FOREST PATHOLOGY: research, teaching, and outreach to keep Wisconsin's
trees and forests green and growing!
Dear WIFDWC Colleagues,
The date for this year’s Western International Forest Disease Work
Conference (WIFDWC) is changing. Originally scheduled for September 15-19,
we are changing the dates to October 27-31 because of USFS budget
restrictions. We understand this may impact some of your plans and regret
any inconvenience. Without the change we thought our attendance would be
very limited. The rest of the meeting details remain the same—Holiday Inn
Downtown at the Park in Missoula, MT. The following is what we need you to
do.
If you have made room reservations at the Holiday Inn for WIFDWC in
September, your reservation has been cancelled. You need to contact the
Holiday Inn again to make a new reservation for the week of October 27.
Contact the Missoula hotel directly and ask for the group name WIFDWC.
The phone number is 406-721-8550. Do not book online or with the Holiday
Inn toll-free number. Deadline for making your room reservation is now
September 27.
If you have registered for the conference and have no changes, then you
need do nothing. If you have not registered and want to attend, the
registration deadline has been extended to October 10.
Register online at
https://app.mt.gov/cgi-bin/confreg/register/index.cgi?CONFERENCE_ID=2302
If you registered and are no longer able to attend, please send an
email to John Schwandt (jschwandt(a)fs.fed.us) and you will receive a
full refund of conference fees.
Student Presentations – All students are invited and encouraged to
spend a few minutes talking at the conference on Tuesday morning.
These are not formal presentations, but an opportunity for students to
be introduced to the attendees. Contact Michelle Cleary at
Michelle.Cleary(a)gov.bc.ca to make arrangements. Formal student papers
should be arranged through Bob Edmonds at bobe(a)u.washington.edu.
Special papers should be arranged through Bob Edmonds at
bobe(a)u.washington.edu
Regional Reports – Oral presentations of
Regional/State-Province/University reports normally done on Tuesday
will not be done this year. Such reports can be submitted to Fred
Baker (fred.baker(a)usu.edu) prior to the meeting for inclusion in
registration packets or copies can be brought to the meeting for
distribution.
Visit the website for details
http://www.fs.fed.us/foresthealth/technology/wif/index.htm
Apologies for multiple emails.
Gregg
WIFDWC Chair
Gregg A. DeNitto
Group Leader, Missoula Field Office
USDA Forest Service Forest Health Protection
Phone: 406-329-3637 FAX: 406-329-3557Cell: 406-396-8840
E-mail: gdenitto(a)fs.fed.us
Website: http://www.fs.fed.us/r1-r4/spf/fhp/
Colleagues - Please circulate to all interested persons:
The Missouri Department of Conservation is seeking candidates for the Forest Pathologist (Resource Scientist) position located in Columbia, Missouri, USA. The Pathologist partners with the Forest Entomologist to monitor forest health and provide forest health information to resource managers and the general public in Missouri. The announcement and information for applying online are available at this site:
http://mdc.mo.gov/about/jobs/
Deadline for applications is September 3, 2008.
--------------------------------------------------------------
Robert Lawrence
Resource Scientist - Forest Entomologist
Missouri Department of Conservation
1110 South College Ave.
Columbia, MO 65201
Tel: 573-882-9909, ext. 3303
Fax: 573-882-4517
E-mail: Robert.Lawrence(a)mdc.mo.gov
---------------------------------------------------------------
To all Forest Pathers:
I am currently looking for Tree of heaven (Ailanthus altissima) seed from all
regions of the U.S. I had previously made this same request last year but if
was already well into the fall season and consequently i received little seed
although many people responded. This time i will provide you with additional
time to scout out and locate seed if time permits. There is evidence to suggest
that Ailanthus was introduced multiple times into this country on both coasts
possibly suggesting that subpopulations of this species may exist. We are
currently working with a Verticillium fungus as a potential control of
Ailanthus and want to test to see if all subspecies of Ailanthus are equally
susceptible to our fungus, assuming that subspecies even exist. Given that all
of our seed source is from the Northern Mid-Atlantic, it would be great to get
representation from the SE, NW, Lake States, and SW. I currently have ID, CA,
WV, VA, NY, and PA seed as well as some from Toronto, Ontario.Please Email me
if you have seed or could get seed (100-250 seeds if possible) from those
regions listed above. Samples can be sent to the address below. Please dry
before sending. Helpful information includes GPS coordinates or closest town
name, number of trees seed was collected from (1 or >1), general setting
(roadside, forest, etc.). Again, thank you for your help.
Regards,
Matt Kasson
Matthew T. Kasson
PhD Student
Department of Plant Pathology
301 Buckhout Lab
The Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA 16802
814.308.2887
mtk178(a)psu.edu
Dear colleagues,
There is new information from the two Czech entomologists, Petr Svacha
und Emil Kucera who have been in prison in India for the last four
weeks. I got this information from my colleague Petr Zabransky, who
himself got the news from Vlada Maly. Vlada Maly was in several times in
contact with Petr Svacha und Emil Kucera by phone. Petr Svacha has asked
to distribute a message from him, which you will find below (translated
to English).
Please continue to support the two entomologists and sign the
petititions to get them released from prison:
http://www.petitiononline.com/h3e09s05/petition.htmlhttp://www.petitiononline.com/wgircn2/petition.html
Thank you for your support an best regards,
Thomas Kirisits
(Please pay attention to the messages below!)
****************************************
Max Barclay
Dear Friends
Martin Rejzek asked me to circulate this letter below from Petr Svacha
- he has translated it so below it is in Czech and English.
The petition prepared by the Indian colleagues has now reached almost
1000 signatures including great names of entomology like John Lawrence,
Ales Smetana, Alex Rasnitsyn, Al Newton etc.! People are still signing
it.
http://www.petitiononline.com/wgircn2/petition-sign.html?
See letter below
Max Barclay
-----Original Message-----
From: Martin REJZEK [mailto:bodo.bodemeyer3@ntlworld.com]
Sent: 16 July 2008 22:57
To: Max Barclay; BARCLAY Max (home)
Subject:
Dear Max,
I have just received an email message that allegedly comes from Petr
Svacha.
In this email Petr asks to distribute the following message. I have no
reason to doubt its origin and so I translate it into English for you.
Best wishes, Martin
___________________________________________
Translated by M. Rejzek from Czech original:
Dear Colleagues,
Many thanks for the great support you have organised in a way that I
can not determine right now. I would like to just correct one fact.
There is no need to look for reasons and excuses why we collected in the
National Park as we have NEVER ENTERED IT. The whole case is likely be
solved very quickly as soon as we get a chance to explain this fact at a
court hearing.
Unfortunately, the whole Darjeeling administration including the
judges is currently on strike. I would like to ask you to forward this
information to all who supported us as we are currently not able to do
so.
Many thanks again,
Petr Svacha
____________________________________________________________
Dr. Thomas Kirisits
Institut für Forstentomologie, Forstpathologie und Forstschutz
Department für Wald- und Bodenwissenschaften
Universität für Bodenkultur (BOKU)
Hasenauerstraße 38
A-1190 Wien
Österreich
Tel.: (++43) (1) 368-24-33
Fax: (++43) (1) 368-24-33 oder (++43) (1) 368-63-52-97
e-mail: thomas.kirisits(a)boku.ac.at
Homepage: http://ifff.boku.ac.at/
Institute of Forest Entomology, Forest Pathology and Forest Protection
Department for Forest and Soil Sciences
BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences
Hasenauerstrasse 38
A-1190 Vienna
Austria
Tel.: (++43) (1) 368-24-33
Fax: (++43) (1) 368-24-33 or (++43) (1) 368-63-52-97
e-mail: thomas.kirisits(a)boku.ac.at
Homepage: http://ifff.boku.ac.at/
Dear colleagues,
two Czech entomologists - Petr Svacha and Emil Kucera - were arrested in India for collecting insects without government permission. Both colleagues are renowned and reliable scientists. Svacha is an expert especially in the larvae of the beetle Family Cerambycidae (longhorn beetles), and Kucera discovered a lot of new insect species, often named after him. In my opinion, knowledge is the first step in conservation nature. Therefore each one day incarcerating Mr. Svacha or Mr. Kucera is also a setback in conservation nature. There is a petiton for releasing in the web, but unfortunatelly focussed on Svacha only. Now The Czech Entomological Society started a new petition for releasing both scientists. Pleas sign the new petition! Details see below:
http://www.petitiononline.com/h3e09s05/petition.htmlhttp://www.telegraphindia.com/1080709/jsp/siliguri/story_9524001.jsp
Many thanks and best regards,
Petr Zabransky
President of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft Oesterreichischer Entomologen
Ludo Hartmann Platz 7
1160 Wien
Austria
Many thanks to those of you who wrote back about the distinctively striped
foliage disease of aspen.
Mike Schomaker (also in Colorado) said that he has seen this as an early
stage of ink spot, caused by Ciborinia whetzelii. He was initially puzzled
until he saw sclerotia forming in the symptomatic leaves later in the
season. I rechecked a few descriptions of the disease, and an initial
zonate pattern is mentioned briefly but I have not found a photograph of
it.
After incubating my "tiger blight" for 3-4 days, the zonation is beginning
to fade and sclerotia have begun to form (see photo below). So, it looks
like Mike is correct (congratulations, although I was starting to like the
name tiger blight!). I will follow the development in nature through the
summer and see whether it begins to look more like ink spot as usually
pictured.
Thomas Kirisits wrote about Septotinia podophyllina and referred me to
Butin. Luckily I have his books. In Forstpathologie für Studium und
Praxis (1973), he describes and presents a drawing of Ringfleckenkrankheit
der Pappel, caused by Sclerotinia (Septotinia) podophyllina. It makes
somewhat round lesions with concentric banding. It has an asexual stage
(unlike Ciborinia) with large conidia and produces apothecia in the
spring. In Krankheiten der Wald- und Parkbäume (1983), he refers to the
pathogen as Septotinia populiperda. This fungus is closely related to
Ciborinia (both in Sclerotiniaceae) so it is not surprising it might
produce similar symptoms.
Risto Jalkanen referred to a similar disease of unknown etiology he has
seen on Salix caprea. Perhaps it is caused by a related fungus.
Several people suggested the possibility of leaf miner (insect) damage. It
certainly is reminiscent of leaf miner damage (which we actually saw at the
same site), but we (including entomologist Tom Eager) are convinced that it
is not leaf miner.
Thanks again to all who kindly wrote back with assistance or just
excitement!
(See attached file: tiger_incubated_spots_2.jpg)
Jim Worrall
US Forest Service
Rocky Mountain Region
Forest Health Management
216 N. Colorado St.
Gunnison CO, 81230
(970) 642-1166 desk
(970) 390-2352 cell
(970) 642-1919 fax
We have a foliage disease of trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides) in
southwestern Colorado, USA. It is beautiful, strikingly unique, appears to
be causing significant impact, and has me completely baffled. The
foresters who brought it to my attention are calling it "tiger blight"
because of the distinctive striping (see pictures below). It is occurring
mostly on suckers and saplings and lower branches of overstory trees. I
was told that in one regenerating stand of suckers, it is killing 30-40% of
the foliage.
There is no fruiting (perhaps very early initials), but there are hyaline
hyphae in the lesions.
If the striping is caused by alternation between night and day (and I can't
think what else would lead to the zonation), the lesions appear to expand
rapidly.
I put some leaves in a moist chamber to see if anything fruits. In the
meantime, has anyone seen this disease before, or even similar symptoms on
another species?
(See attached file: tiger_4.jpg)
(See attached file: tiger_5.jpg)
(See attached file: tiger_group_1.jpg)
Thanking you in advance,
Jim Worrall
US Forest Service
Rocky Mountain Region
Forest Health Management
216 N. Colorado St.
Gunnison CO, 81230
(970) 642-1166 desk
(970) 209-1332 cell
(970) 642-1919 fax
Dear Jim,
What a beautiful leaf disease!
Could it be Septotinia podophyllina, the only poplar leaf disease I know
where concentric rings occur? I was surprised that it is not mentioned
in the North American "bible" (Synclair & Lyon). The textbook of Butin
has a description and a drawing.
I found a link with a short description of the disease:
http://www.fao.org/docrep/004/AC492E/AC492E06.htm
I also found one reference: Kam, M. de, 1973: Life history, host range
an distribution of Septotinia podophyllinia. European Journal of Forest
Pathology 3: 1-6.
Please let us know what is is, as soon as you know!
Hope this helps.
All best,
Thomas Kirisits
____________________________________________________________
Dr. Thomas Kirisits
Institut für Forstentomologie, Forstpathologie und Forstschutz
Department für Wald- und Bodenwissenschaften
Universität für Bodenkultur (BOKU)
Hasenauerstraße 38
A-1190 Wien
Österreich
Tel.: (++43) (1) 368-24-33
Fax: (++43) (1) 368-24-33 oder (++43) (1) 368-63-52-97
e-mail: thomas.kirisits(a)boku.ac.at
Homepage: http://ifff.boku.ac.at/
Institute of Forest Entomology, Forest Pathology and Forest Protection
Department for Forest and Soil Sciences
BOKU - University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences
Hasenauerstrasse 38
A-1190 Vienna
Austria
Tel.: (++43) (1) 368-24-33
Fax: (++43) (1) 368-24-33 or (++43) (1) 368-63-52-97
e-mail: thomas.kirisits(a)boku.ac.at
Homepage: http://ifff.boku.ac.at/
>>> James Worrall <jworrall(a)fs.fed.us> 07/13/08 3:17 PM >>>
We have a foliage disease of trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides) in
southwestern Colorado, USA. It is beautiful, strikingly unique, appears
to
be causing significant impact, and has me completely baffled. The
foresters who brought it to my attention are calling it "tiger blight"
because of the distinctive striping (see pictures below). It is
occurring
mostly on suckers and saplings and lower branches of overstory trees. I
was told that in one regenerating stand of suckers, it is killing 30-40%
of
the foliage.
There is no fruiting (perhaps very early initials), but there are
hyaline
hyphae in the lesions.
If the striping is caused by alternation between night and day (and I
can't
think what else would lead to the zonation), the lesions appear to
expand
rapidly.
I put some leaves in a moist chamber to see if anything fruits. In the
meantime, has anyone seen this disease before, or even similar symptoms
on
another species?
(See attached file: tiger_4.jpg)
(See attached file: tiger_5.jpg)
(See attached file: tiger_group_1.jpg)
Thanking you in advance,
Jim Worrall
US Forest Service
Rocky Mountain Region
Forest Health Management
216 N. Colorado St.
Gunnison CO, 81230
(970) 642-1166 desk
(970) 209-1332 cell
(970) 642-1919 fax
