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Prof. Francis Petersen, Vice-Chancellor and Principal of the University of Pretoria, welcomes industry partners such as Grain SA Sappi Southern Africa, government and acedemic members coming together to keep our trees healthy! 🌲

“When there’s a new pest or pathogen, don’t worry - TPCP is coming.” – Graeme Wild, CEO of Sappi Southern Africa, during his talk on the state of forestry in South Africa at our annual #TPCP2025 meeting. Proud to be part of the team protecting our trees! #Forestry #TreeHealth

Prof. Brett Hurley Brett Hurley, professor at the University of Pretoria, giving his talk on global perspectives on biocontrol agents in plantation forests at the annual #TPCP2025 meeting. 🌲 #TreeHealth CROPWATCH AFRICA

Dr Sam van Holsbeeck Sam Van Holsbeeck, from the University of the Sunshine Coast, sharing his insights into solutions for priority plant pest and pathogen management in Australian forestry plantations. 🌲 #TPCP2025 #TreeHealth #Forestry

Dr Privilege Makunde, postdoctoral fellow at #FABI, discusses local biocontrol approaches of Euproctis terminalis, the pine brown tail moth. 🦋 #TPCP2025 #TreeHealth #Biocontrol #Forestry

Dr Mesfin Gossa Mesfin Gossa, from ICFR, providing some insights into the process behind registering chemicals needed for pest and disease management. 🧪 #TPCP2025 #TreeHealth #Forestry

"Forest pests and pathogens know no boundaries.” Prof. Irene Barnes Barnes & Prof. Mike Wingfield share lessons from the RGE-FABI Tree Health Programme: collaboration is key, monitoring is vital, and sharing tools & tech accelerates impact. #TPCP2025 #TreeHealth #FABI

Prof David Drew, from Stellenbosch University Stellenbosch University Research at Stellenbosch University, discusses the impact of Open Air Laboratories (OAL) in forestry in South Africa. 🌳 #TPCP2025 #TreeHealth #Forestry

Advancing forest pathology: the need for community‐driven molecular experimental model systems - Oostlander, Fleißner & Slippers - New Phytologist - Wiley Online Library nph.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.11… Anne Oostlander FABI UP Faculty of Natural and Agricultural Sciences @uptuks TU Braunschweig

Streaming Live Now: Africa Week 2025 Panel Sessions Join us for discussions on climate, economic, knowledge integrity and health security, all through African and global lenses. Watch live: https:bit.ly/3FkA7ZA #AfricaWeek2025 #FutureAfrica #GlobalAfrica #UP

Thank you FABI for this piece. Hard work and willpower wins the day for Phrasia! fabinet.up.ac.za/index.php/news… #fabinews via FABI

Meet NRF-funded Sithembile Kunene, a PhD student at University of Pretoria: nrf.ac.za/nrf-youth-mont… Her research is contributing to a better future by advancing sustainable forestry practices and enhancing plant resilience against diseases. #YouthMonth2025

For this week’s FABI Friday Feature, we’re highlighting a new threat to South African Eucalyptus plantations: Eucalyptus scab and shoot malformation (ESSM) caused by Elsinoe necatrix (Indonesia) & E. masingae (South Africa). 🪴🦠 Let’s break it down: #FABIFridayFeature 🧵

What does it look like? ESSM affects young leaves and shoots the most. Early symptoms: 🔸 Small, brown-black necrotic spots 🔸 Surrounded by yellow halos 🔸 Deformation & curvature of leaves 🔸 Shot-hole effect from dried lesions #TreeHealth

Severe infections cause: ⚠️ Girdled, distorted shoots ⚠️ Crinkled leaves ⚠️ Loss of apical dominance ⚠️ Epicormic shoots ⚠️ Eventual death of susceptible clones after repeated infections #PlantPathology

The fungus: 🔬 Slow-growing colonies Grows best at 25 °C 🧫 Produce orange to red-pigmented toxin on media 🧪 Still relatively unknown biologically 📍 First reported in in 2023 #FungalDisease

Where & when? 🌍 Found in Mpumalanga & KwaZulu-Natal 💧 Appears soon after rain 🌞 Trees recover during dry periods 🧬 Affects Eucalyptus species, especially in cooler, higher-altitude areas #ForestrySouthAfrica

Origin? Still uncertain — but suspected to be linked to regions where Eucalyptus is native (Australia and nearby islands). 📚 Ongoing research at FABI is working to better understand & manage this pathogen. #FABI #PlantHealth

🌿 FABI Friday Feature This week we spotlight Austropuccinia psidii – the rust fungus behind Myrtle Rust, a serious threat to Myrtaceae species. #FABIFriday

One more day to submit Abstracts for PPRM2025Edinburgh We have a great lineup of invited speakers, a great location and quite a few slots for speakers from submitted abstracts. PLease share and retweet far and wide!