CANADIAN PHYTOPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY • SOCIÉTÉ CANADIENNE DE ... · Les progrès accomplis sont prometteurs, mais nous ne sommes pas encore sortis de l’auberge. La SCP continue

CPS-SCP News 55 (4) - 71

Inside this issue:

Announcements .......................................... 83Awards .......................................................... 78Contact the Editors ..................................... 86Deadline for the March Issue ................... 85Employment ................................................. 85Message de la Présidente .......................... 73People and Travel ....................................... 82President’s Message ................................... 71Regional Meeting Reports ........................ 75

VOL. 55, NO. 4 December 2011www.cps-scp.ca

CANADIAN PHYTOPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY • SOCIÉTÉ CANADIENNE DE PHYTOPATHOLOGIE○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○ ○

CPS • SCP

President’s Message

News

Mary Ruth McDonaldCPS-SCP President/Présidente

Happy New Year. I hope all of you had time to spendwith friends and family over the holiday season.The fall is always a busy time for collecting data,analysis, and report writing, and is also the timewhen most or all of the regional CPS groups havetheir annual meetings. Now that we are in 2012, I

am still writing reports, but will soon be lookingtoward the coming field season and the CPS annualmeeting.

Regional Meetings

The CPS regional meetings are very importantevents for plant pathology in Canada. They providea great opportunity to hear about the latestdevelopments in research and new or re-emergingpathogens. They are also a great place to catch upwith colleagues, including those who work downthe hall or across the street. Usually more gradstudents, post docs and technicians can participatein these meetings, and grad students can “get theirfeet wet” with poster or oral presentations in asituation that is a bit less intimidating than anational or international conference. Therecognition that comes with winning an award for a


“Involving graduate students and early careerscientists in the Canadian Phytopathological

Society is a top priority.”

presentation provides a nice boost to theconfidence, and looks great on a CV. In the interestsof encouraging grad student membership in CPS,why not include a membership for the coming yearas part of the grad student awards?

These regional meetings only take place becausepeople volunteer their time. The efforts of theorganizers are much appreciated. Check out theregional sections of the CPS website for informationand updates.

Membership and Awards

Involving graduate students and early careerscientists in the Canadian Phytopathological Societyis a top priority. The CPS Board is considering waysto encourage gradstudents to becomemembers of CPSand to remaininvolved when theymove into theworking world.We’d be happy tohear your ideas.One initiative, suggested by past president RichardBelanger, is a scholarship for graduate students inplant pathology. Plans for this are in the works andthe details will be announced at the 2012 annualmeeting. Again in 2012, there will be three travelawards for grad students to help cover the costs ofattending the annual meeting. This is a good timefor grad students and supervisors to start talkingabout attending the meeting and applying for thetravel awards. Students must be members of CPS tobe eligible; another good reason to keep yourmembership current.

Online membership renewal was available for thefirst time this year. If you haven’t renewed yourmembership yet, now is the time to do it! Thank youto web master Tom Hsiang and Treasurer SarahHambleton for their work in making the onlinesystem a reality.

This is also a good time of year to considernominating a worthy colleague for a CPS award.When two or three people get together to prepare anomination, it is not a hard job. Submit nominationsto Odile Carisse ([email protected]), the Chairof the Awards Committee.

Environment Canada and plantpathology

One of the biggest issues facing plant pathology inCanada for the past year and a half has been thenew interpretation of the Environment Canadaregulations for New Substances Notification(Organisms). This involves plant pathogens that areincreased in the lab (“manufactured”) and appliedin the field. We have been working closely withJeff Stewart, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, andPierre Petelle of CropLife Canada to come to asolution that will be acceptable to all parties. TheScience Policy Committee of CPS, under theleadership of Fouad Daayff, prepared draftsubmissions this fall, and there have been somepositive steps. Dr. Karen Dodds, ADM, Environment

Canada, has beenvery helpful insuggestingreasonablesolutions and JeffStewart has beenworking closelywith EnvironmentCanada to sort out

the details.

The progress on this issue is promising, but we arenot out of the woods yet. The CPS is continuing tocooperate with the other parties towards aresolution and we will provide specific details tothe membership as soon as possible.

Niagara Falls, June 1012

The 2012 annual meeting will be held in scenicNiagara Falls, Ontario, June 24 to 27. The NiagaraPeninsula is an area of wineries, orchards, andmany other facets of horticulture. A great place forthose who enjoy plants, plant diseases, or justbeautiful scenery, not to mention “The Falls”.

Some interesting reading

Two books, not directly related to plant pathology,that I recommend, are The Botany of Desire byMichael Pollan, and Freakonomics by Steven D.Levitt and Stephen J. Dubner. These books provideentertaining reading and suggest different ways of


looking at the world, which in the end, can haveapplications to science. The Botany of Desire hasbeen required reading in my lab for several years,an idea I got from a plant breeder colleague, IrwinGoldman, at the Univ. of Wisconsin. It challengesour ideas about plants and plant breeding, arguingthat plants use people to achieve evolutionarysuccess (reproduction and dispersal) as much aspeople use plants. He uses interesting stories ofhuman interactions with four very different plantspecies to illustrate our co-dependence.

I came across Freakonomics more recently, andstarted recommending that book to my lab lastyear. Freakonomics is written by an economist whouses statistics to challenge many of ourassumptions and “common knowledge” about theworld we live in. Looking at situations fromdifferent angles, and then testing assumptions(hypotheses) using statistics, has manyapplications to our work as researchers. Indeed,the APS had a session “The Freakonomics of PlantPathology” at their 2011 meeting.

Happy reading. I look forward to seeing you at the2012 annual meeting, and maybe discussing thesebooks at the reception or banquet.

Message de la Présidente

Bonne Année! J’espère que, durant la période desfêtes, vous avez tous pu passer du temps avec lesmembres de votre famille et vos amis. L’automneest toujours occupé. C’est le temps de collecter lesdonnées, de procéder aux analyses, de rédiger lesrapports. C’est également le temps pour la plupartdes groupes régionaux de la Société canadienne dephytopathologie (SCP) de tenir leur réunionannuelle. Bien que la nouvelle année soit bienamorcée, j’en suis encore à rédiger des rapports,mais, bientôt, nous envisagerons la campagne surle terrain et la réunion annuelle de la Société.

Réunions régionales

Les réunions régionales de la SCP sont primordialespour la phytopathologie au Canada. Ce sont desoccasions uniques de se tenir au fait des derniers

avancements de la recherche ainsi que des agentspathogènes, émergents et réémergents. Lesréunions sont également des occasions privilégiéesqui permettent de renouer avec des collègues, ycompris ceux qui travaillent dans le même édificeque nous ou de l’autre côté de la rue.Habituellement, plus d’étudiants de 2e et 3e cycle,d’étudiants postdoctoraux et de techniciens peuventparticiper à ces réunions. De fait, les étudiants de 2e

et 3e cycle peuvent « se faire les dents » avec uneprésentation orale ou une séance d’affiche dans unenvironnement un peu moins intimidant qu’uneconférence nationale ou internationale. Lareconnaissance qui accompagne le fait de gagner unprix pour une présentation procure une bonne dosede confiance, en plus de bien paraître sur un CV!Afin d’encourager ces étudiants à adhérer à la SCP,pourquoi ne pas, cette année, inclure le coût del’adhésion dans les prix qui leur sont destinés.

Ces réunions annuelles ne peuvent être tenues qu’àcause des bénévoles qui y consacrent leur temps.Les efforts des organisateurs sont grandementappréciés. Vérifiez les informations concernant lesactivités et les mises à jour relatives aux sectionsrégionales sur le site Web de la Société.

Adhésion et récompenses

C’est une grande priorité que d’impliquer lesétudiants de 2e et 3e cycle ainsi que les scientifiquesen début de carrière dans la Société canadienne dephytopathologie. Le conseil de la SCP envisage desfaçons d’encourager ces étudiants à devenirmembres de la Société et de maintenir leurengagement après qu’ils ont accédé au marché dutravail. Vos idées sont les bienvenues. Une idée,lancée par Richard Bélanger, président sortant, estd’offrir une bourse d’études aux étudiants enphytopathologie de 2e et 3e cycle. La planification estamorcée et les détails seront dévoilés à la prochaineréunion annuelle. Encore cette année, la Sociétéaccordera trois bourses de voyages à des étudiantsde 2e et 3e cycle pour les aider à couvrir les fraisencourus par leur présence à la réunion annuelle.C’est maintenant le temps pour ces étudiants etleurs directeurs de discuter de leur présence à laréunion et de faire une demande pour obtenir unede ces bourses. Pour être admissibles, les étudiantsdoivent être membres de la SCP : une autre bonneraison pour que votre cotisation soit à jour.


Pour la première fois cette année, il était possiblede renouvelerson adhésionen ligne. Sivous ne l’avezpas encorerenouvelée,c’estmaintenant lemoment de lefaire! Je tiensà remercier Tom Hsiang, notre webmestre, et SarahHambleton, notre trésorière, d’avoir fait de ceservice une réalité.

C’est également le temps de l’année pourcommencer à penser à qui sélectionner parmi voscollègues méritants pour les récompenses de la SCP.Lorsque deux ou trois personnes se réunissent pourpréparer une proposition de candidat, c’estl’enfance de l’art. Soumettez vos propositions àOdile Carisse ([email protected]), présidentedu comité des prix.

Environnement Canada et laphytopathologie

Une de principales questions concernant laphytopathologie au Canada depuis la dernièreannée et demie est la nouvelle interprétationd’Environnement Canada du Règlement sur lesrenseignements concernant les substancesnouvelles (organismes). Cela concerne les agentspathogènes multipliés (« fabriqués ») enlaboratoire et utilisés en champ. Nous avonstravaillé en étroite collaboration avec Jeff Stewartd’Agriculture et Agroalimentaire Canada, et PierrePetelle de CropLife Canada afin de trouver unesolution mutuellement acceptable. Le Comité de lapolitique scientifique de la SCP, dirigé par FouadDaayff, a préparé l’automne dernier des projets dedemandes, et il semblerait que l’on manifeste uncertain degré d’ouverture. La sous-ministreadjointe, Karen Dobs, d’Environnement Canada,s’est montrée des plus obligeantes en suggérantdes solutions raisonnables et Jeff Stewart a travailléde concert avec Environnement Canada pour enpréciser les détails.

Les progrès accomplis sont prometteurs, mais nousne sommespas encoresortis del’auberge. LaSCP continuede coopéreravec les autresparties afin derésoudre lasituation, et

nous vous ferons part des détails dès que possible.

Niagara Falls, juin 2012

La réunion annuelle de 2012 se tiendra dans lapittoresque ville de Niagara Falls, en Ontario, du 24au 27 juin. La péninsule du Niagara est reconnuepour ses vignobles, ses vergers et plusieurs autresspécialités horticoles. C’est un endroit merveilleuxpour tous ceux qui apprécient les plantes, lesmaladies des plantes ou simplement les paysagesenchanteurs, sans parler des chutes.

Quelques livres intéressants

Bien que pas nécessairement liés à laphytopathologie, je vous recommande la lecturedes deux livres suivants : The Botany of Desire, deMichael Pollan, et Freakonomics, de Steven D.Levitt et Stephen J. Dubner. Ces livres, pour lemoins divertissants, suggèrent différentes façonsde voir le monde et peuvent, au bout du compte,trouver des applications en science. Depuisplusieurs années, la lecture de The Botany of Desireest obligatoire pour ceux qui travaillent dans monlaboratoire, une idée qui m’a été donnée par uncollègue phytogénéticien de l’Université duWisconsin, Irwin Goldman. Le livre remet enquestion nos idées sur les plantes et leur sélection,soutenant que les plantes utilisent les humainspour évoluer avec succès (reproduction etdissémination), et ce, autant que les humainsutilisent les plantes. Il se sert d’histoiresintéressantes relatant des interactions humainesavec quatre espèces de plantes très différentespour illustrer notre codépendance.

“C’est une grande priorité que d’impliquer les étudiantsde 2e et 3e cycle ainsi que les scientifiques en début de

carrière dans la Société canadienne dephytopathologie.”


Regional Meeting Reports

The Saskatchewan Regional Group of CPS held their

annual meeting on Dec 6, 2011 in Saskatoon. The

meeting was attended by 60 people, enriched by

the diversity of attendees from industry and

government, and a spectrum of research scientists,

technicians, post doctoral fellows and graduate

students. Topics for oral presentations were varied

as well, including those on the chemistry of plant

defense, molecular host-pathogen interactions,

inoculum survival, and chemical disease

management. There were several presentations

concerning clubroot, discussing aspects of

biocontrol, choosing a model plant for ongoing

research, and the impact of soil conditions on

disease expression. Invited speaker John

Stavrinides from the University of Regina brought a

unique look at pathogens and pathogenesis with

his talk on “Deciphering the biology of Pantoea: a

true cross-kingdom plant-pathogen”. Of the ten

oral presentations, four were from students. The

Best Student Presentation Award was given to

Estifanos Yaya for his work entitled “Novel

cruciferous phytoalexins and biogenetic

relationships with indole glucosinolates”

coauthored with M.S.C. Pedras from the

Department of Chemistry, University of

Saskatchewan. Attendees also enjoyed the seven

posters on topics ranging from phytochemistry to

pathogenic races. Most of the posters focused on

field research topics, several of which related to

soilborne pathogens, soil microbial communities

and/or their relationships with pesticides. The Best

Student Poster Award was presented to Ahmad

Esmaeili Taheri of the Department of Food and

Bioproduct Sciences at the U of S for his work on

“Reassessment of the role of Cochliobolus sativus in

common root rot of cereals: an organ specific fungal

community study”. Mr. Taheri’s work is coauthored

by C. Hamel and Y. Gan (AAFC-SPARC Swift Current)

and V. Vujanovic.

CPS Saskatchewan Annual Meeting

Quant à Freakonomics, il m’est tombé sous la mainplus récemment, et c’est à partir de l’année dernièreque j’ai commencé à le recommander à monpersonnel de laboratoire. Freakonomics est écrit parun économiste qui utilise les statistiques pourcontredire plusieurs de nos hypothèses et « faitsnotoires » concernant le monde dans lequel nousvivons. L’observation des situations sous différentsangles puis la vérification des hypothèses à l’aide destatistiques trouvent de nombreuses applicationsdans nos travaux de chercheurs. De fait, la Sociétéaméricaine de phytopathologie a tenu une séancesur « The Freakonomics of Plant Pathology » lors deleur réunion annuelle de 2011.

Bonne lecture! J’ai hâte de vous voir à notre réunionannuelle cette année. Peut-être aurons-nousl’occasion de discuter de ces livres durant laréception ou au banquet.


This was the first year that our regional meeting

grew beyond a half day meeting to a full day of

presentations, discussion and networking. Many

thanks to all of the presenters for making this

possible, and to our sponsors BASF and Bayer

CropScience for their generous support.

Cheryl Armstrong-Cho

CPS Sask Regional Representative

Plant Pathology Society of AlbertaAnnual Meeting

The 32nd annual meeting of the Plant PathologySociety of Alberta (PPSA) was held from November7-9, 2011, at the University of Alberta in Edmonton,AB. The 57 people who registered for the PPSAconference were presented with in-depthinformation on the latest research and diseasesurvey findings through 16 oral papers and 12posters. Abstracts for these oral and posterpresentations were submitted to the CanadianJournal of Plant Pathology for publication. Severalexcellent presentations were made by graduatestudents from the University of Alberta andUniversity of Lethbridge. These were judged by apanel consisting of Denis Gaudet, Ron Howard andMichael Harding. At the banquet, the Best OralStudent Presentation Award was presented toRobyne Bowness for a paper entitled “Initialinsensitivity response of Mycosphaerella pinodesisolates to pyraclostobin fungicide”. The BestStudent Poster Presentation Award was presentedto Melanie Kalischuk for a poster entitled“Transgenerational pathogen resistance in canolafollowing biotic stress”. An award for best technicalpresentation was presented to Byron Puchalski foran oral paper entitled “The 2011 stripe rustepidemic in Western Canada”. The Terry SwansonMemorial Scholarship was presented to AlirezaAkhavan and the Plant Pathology Graduate StudentAward was presented to Melanie Kalischuk.Highlights of the business meeting included areport from the Rapeseed Congress in Prague,where Steve Strelkov noted that the plantpathology community was well-represented. Areport from the Plant Canada/CPS meeting in

Halifax was given by Bruce Gossen and it was notedthat a topic of particularly heated discussion at thatmeeting was the restrictive regulations imposed byEnvironment Canada, the excessive paperworkrequired for compliance for the simplest of soildisease projects, and the possibility that aresolution of these issues may be forthcoming. Adisease survey report by Victor Manolii noted thatthe total number of clubroot-infected fields hasrisen to 831, up from 566 in 2010, and that thedisease is spreading into new counties and intoSaskatchewan. A report by Byron Puchalski noted aparticularly heavy infestation of stripe rust this year,especially in the southeast and eastern portions ofAlberta. Tiesen Cao reported on the widespreadoccurrence of mycosphaerella blight on field pea incentral Alberta, while Kan-Fa Chang also noted theprevalence of downy mildew north of Edmonton,some cases of which were exceptionally severe.Kequan Xi reported a low prevalence of stripe rustin winter wheat fields in central Alberta, but thatabout half of the spring wheat fields were affectedby the disease. This year, as a result of the tirelessefforts of President Sheau-Fang Hwang, the PPSAwas generously supported through corporatesponsorships. As a result, it was decided to buy 25copies of Plant Pathology in Canada 1970-2008,which will be used to supplement future studentawards. A great deal of credit is due to SteveStrelkov and the organizing committee for thevenue and the abundance of healthy, nutritiousfood provided. In particular, Ileana Strelkov, VictorManolii and Jie Feng were instrumental in makingthis meeting a success. The new officers of thesociety will be Bruce Gossen as President, MichaelHarding as Vice-President, and Syama Chatterton asSecretary-Treasurer. The 2012 meeting will be heldin Lloydminster.

Respectfully Submitted,Sheau-Fang Hwang, PPSA Past President


PPSA President Sheau-Fang Hwang (centre) with 2011 award recipients (L to R):Best Student Poster Presentation and Plant Pathology Student Awards: Melanie KalischukBest Technical Presentation Award: Byron PuchalskiTerry Swanson Memorial Scholarship: Alireza AkhavanBest Student Oral Presentation Award: Robyne Bowness

Attendees at the 2011 annual PPSA meeting


Canadian Phytopathological SocietyRegional Representatives

Please contact your CPS Regional Rep forinformation on membership or plant pathologyevents in your region:

British ColumbiaVippen Joshi: [email protected]

Alberta (PPSA)Denis Gaudet: [email protected]

SaskatchewanCheryl Armstrong-Cho: [email protected]

ManitobaFouad Daayf: [email protected]

Western OntarioKenneth Conn: [email protected]

Eastern OntarioBernard Vigier: [email protected]

QuebecRussell Tweddell: [email protected]

MaritimesRick Peters: [email protected]

Awards

Dr. Henry Huang recognized asOutstanding Alumnus

The Outstanding Alumnus Award from the NationalChung-Hsing University in Taichung, Taiwan, wasrecently received by Dr. Henry Huang. The ceremonyfor the “15th Award of Outstanding Alumni” tookplace on October 29, 2011, which was the 92nd

Anniversary of the University. This award was inrecognition of Dr. Huang’s life-time achievementsand contribution to science (plant pathology).

After retiring from Agriculture and Agri-FoodCanada in 2007, Dr. Huang accepted an appointmentas “Visiting Chair Professor” at the TaiwanAgricultural Research Institute to continue pursuinghis research interests at the Biotechnology Division(2008-2009) and at the Plant Pathology Division(2009-2011). He also received an appointment as“Adjunct Chair Professor of Biocontrol” to carry outteaching responsibilities at the Department of PlantPathology, National Chung-Hsing University, wherehe enjoyed working with young scientists andgraduate students.

Dr. Prem Karbanda Awarded ChinaTianshan Award

Dr. Prem Kharbanda was recently awarded the 2011China Tianshan Award for his significantcontributions to the economic and social progress inXinjiang, China. At the invitation of the ForeignExperts Bureau of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomousregion, he travelled to Urumqi, China, to receive theaward on September 26, 2011. The elegant awardceremony was attended by over 200 invited guests,mainly foreigners and high ranking officials. Dr.Huang Wei, the Vice Governor of the Xinjiang UygurAutonomous Region, and Mr. Han Chen, thechairman of the Foreign Experts Bureau, greetedthe guests and presented the awards.

Tomato processing is the leading industry inXinjiang, producing over 600,000 tons of paste,which accounts for 80 percent of the total Chineseand over 13 percent of the global export market.


Over the past six years, Dr. Kharbanda helped toset up a new crop disease diagnostic lab at theShihezi Vegetable Research Institute in Shihezi,Xinjiang, China, (SVRIS), and provided expertise todiagnose important diseases on processingtomatoes, cotton and pepper. All three crops areseverely affected by several Fusarium spp. and

Verticillium spp., causing significant economic lossesin the region. He trained several staff to recognisevarious diseases, isolate and identify fungi, as wellas provided expert advice on management of thesediseases. He also guided four students in theirpostgraduate research at the SVRIS. The SVRIS staffcan now screen tomato and pepper varieties fordisease resistance.

Dr. Prem Kharbanda (Far Left) with other 2011 China Tianshan Award recipients and Dr. Huang Wei, theVice Governor of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region(Centre); other recipients are from USA(Centre right), France (Far right) and Russia (Centre left)


In March 2011, the Alberta Institute of Agrologists, at their Annual Meeting in Banff, alsorecognized Dr. Kharbanda as Distinguished Agrologist for his outstanding service to Agricultureover the past 35 years. Presently, Dr. Kharbanda is an Emeritus Scientist at the AlbertaInnovates - Technology Futures (Alberta Research Council) in Edmonton, Alberta, where heretired in 2008.


Canola Clubroot Risk Mitigation Team wins a Silver Award at Alberta AgricultureTeamwork Recognition Awards 2011

The Teamwork Recognition Awards recognizeoutstanding teamwork within Alberta Agricultureand Rural Development. Drs. Sheau-Fang Hwangand Stephen Strelkov from Alberta Agriculture andRural Development and the University of Alberta,respectively, formed a collaborative research teamin 2006 to mitigate the impact of clubroot, a newand devastating disease of canola in Alberta. Theteam’s objective was to evaluate tools to reduce theimpact of clubroot in an integrated and sustainablemanner. This included the identification of clubroot-resistant canola lines, and assessment of seedtreatments and bait crops to reduce diseaseseverity under field conditions. Additionally,molecular studies were undertaken to betterunderstand the proteins and processes associatedwith clubroot development, and to developmethods to quickly and accurately detect thepathogen. Annual surveys for clubroot have alsohelped to track spread of the disease and to betterunderstand pathogen epidemiology.

Members of the research team recognized with thisaward included Drs. Hwang and Strelkov as teamleaders, along with team members Dr. Jie Feng, Dr.Qixing Zhou, Mr. George Turnbull, Mr. CamStevenson, and Dr. Hafiz Ahmed from AlbertaAgriculture and Rural Development, and Dr. VictorManolii and Dr. Tiesen Cao from the University ofAlberta. Team members have assisted each other asneeded by pooling the time and resourcesnecessary to carry out the various field, laboratoryand greenhouse projects associated with theresearch. Drs. Hwang and Strelkov have coordinatedthe efforts to minimize conflicting demands on timeand resources and have organized meetings andfacilitated communication within the team to makeeffective use of the time of each team member.The project showed the value of sharing resourcesamong different institutions, as progress in themanagement of clubroot on canola has been rapid.Given the success of this model, the team hascontinued to expand and now includes additionalpersonnel from Alberta Agriculture and RuralDevelopment and the University of Alberta, as wellas colleagues from Agriculture and Agri-FoodCanada.

Members of the clubroot research team recoqnized with an Alberta Agriculture Teamwork RecognitionAward. From left to right, Tiesen Cao, Hafiz Ahmed, Victor Manolii, Cam Stevenson, Hon. Evan Berger(Minister of Alberta Agriculture and Rural Development), Sheau-Fang Hwang, Stephen Strelkov, QixingZhou, George Turnbull and Jie Feng.


People and Travel

Plant Pathologist in Kenya

Vikram Bisht, Plant Pathologist with ManitobaAgriculture, Foods & Rural Initiatives, travelled inFebruary 2011 to Kenya as a volunteer with CNFA/USAID, to assess seed potato production in selectedareas of Kenya. Potato is gaining importance as afood crop, where maize is the number one crop.There are two main potato production seasons. Theseed potatoes are stored in diffused light storage;cold storage facilities are still limited. During twoweeks of work with local organizations involvedwith seed potato production, Vikram visited thetissue culture, minitubers (soilless andhydroponics) seed production facilities of theKenyan government (Kenyan Agricultural ResearchInstitute), Agriculture Development Corporationand the private sector. Under KEPHIS (Kenya Plant

Health Inspection Service), Kenya has a well-established seed potato certification system.Compared to North American productivity (280 to400 cwt/acre), the Kenyan productivity is muchlower (60 cwt/acre, FAO 2008). Lack of moisture,insufficient fertilizer usage and seed qualityappeared to be the main limitations. A lot of effortis being put in to improving quality and quantity ofseed potatoes available to potato farmers.

Vikram was lucky to find time and see the wildelephants, giraffes, zebras, flamingos, gazelles, etc.No trip to Kenya is complete without visiting wildanimal sanctuaries or going on a safari.


Announcements

CPS 2012 Annual Meeting

Mark your calendars - the 2012 CPS meeting will beheld from Sunday, June 24 to Wednesday, June 27,2012, at the “Marriott on the Falls” hotel in NiagaraFalls, Ontario.

The room rates are $139 (fallsview) and $125(cityview), plus tax. The registration fee will bearound $400 for regular members , and will includethe reception, banquet, coffee breaks, andbreakfast and lunch on Monday, Tuesday, andWednesday. At this point we do not know what thestudent registration and non-member registrationfees will be, but more information will follow soon.

For any further information on this subject, pleasecontact Kenneth L. Conn at [email protected] ,Telephone 519-457-1470 (285).

Canadian Forum for Biological ControlStudent Poster Award

The Canadian Forum for Biological Control (CFBC) isrunning its student poster award again this year forstudents working in the area of biological control.Students who have presented a biocontrol relatedposter at a national or regional conference inCanada during 2011 are eligible to enter their posterto be considered for this $200 prize. Last year’swinner was Edna Quan of Simon Fraser Universityfor her poster “Does the larval stage matter to theswede midge parasitoid Synopeas myles?”

Check the CFBC website or talk to Chandra Moffat orLars Andreassen ([email protected]) fordetails about how to enter this national postercompetition: the deadline to submit your entry isJanuary 31st, 2012.

Prix étudiant de la meilleure affiche du Forumcanadien sur la lutte biologique

Le Forum canadien sur la lutte biologique (FCLB)décerne une fois encore son prix étudiant annuelde la meilleure affiche à des étudiants travaillantdans le domaine de la lutte biologique. Lesétudiants qui ont présenté une affiche sur le sujetde la lutte biologique à une conférence nationaleou régionale au Canada au cours de l’année 2011sont admissibles pour entrer en lice pour le prix de200 $. La gagnante de l’année dernière était EdnaQuan de l’Université Simon Fraser pour son afficheintitulée « Does the larval stage matter to the swedemidge parasitoid Synopeas myles? » (Le stadelarvaire est-il important pour le parasitoïdecécidomyie du chou-fleur appelé Synopeas myles?)

Consultez le site Web du FCLB ou communiquezavec Chandra Moffat ou Lars Andreassen([email protected]) pour obtenir de plusamples renseignements sur la manière de participerà ce concours national d’affiches. La date limite desoumission de votre candidature est la fin du moisde janvier 2012.


Epidemiology-Canopy-Architecture International Conference • July 1-5, 2012 •Rennes, France

Plant and Canopy Architecture Impact on DiseaseEpidemiology and Pest DevelopmentThe ECA International Conference will be held inRennes, France, from July 1- 5, 2012. Earlyregistration deadline is May 1, 2012. The websitededicated to the conference is now open. Pleasesee https://colloque.inra.fr/epidemiology_canopy_architecture where you willfind information about the tentative programme,important deadlines, and committees.

Impact de l’architecture de la plante et du couvertsur l’épidémiologie des maladies et ledéveloppement des ravageursLe site web dédié au congrès est désormais ouvert:https://colloque.inra.fr/epidemiology_canopy_architectureVous y trouverez l’information nécessaireconcernant le programme provisoire, les échéanceset les comités.

INTERNATIONAL NEWSLETTER ON PLANTPATHOLOGY

News and announcements from all on any aspect ofPlant Pathology are invited for the Newsletter.Contributions from the ISPP Executive, Council andSubject Matter Committees, Associated Societiesand Supporting Organizations are requested.

Editor: Brian J Deverall e-mail:[email protected]

Members of Associated Societies of ISPP canreceive e-mail notification of Newsletter updatesby joining the ISPP mail list.

http://www.isppweb.org/newsletter.asp

ISPP NEWSLETTER 41 (10) October 2011

In this issue:• Serious Problems posed by Puccinia psidii in

Australia

• The Importance of Plant Science toHumanity

• FAO Vegetable IPM Program in South &Southeast Asia

• Indian Phytopathological Society andcoming Symposium

• International Symposium in China onTropical and Subtropical Fruits

• French Society of Phytopathology (SociétéFrançaise de Phytopathologie)

• BGRI Technical Workshop in 2012 in China• APS Journals – Editor’s Selections• International Society of Sugarcane

Technologists and a Workshop in China• Bacterial disease of betel vines in Taiwan• Annual Review of Phytopathology• Seed China News• ADVERTISEMENT about the Journal of

Integrated Pest Management• Acknowledgements• Coming Events

ISPP NEWSLETTER 41 (11) November 2011

In this issue:• International Authority on Stripe (Yellow)

Rust of Wheat• Fungal Diversity and its 50th Volume


Employment• Rapid Perception of Stem Rust Spores byCereal Leaves

• Extended Abstracts from the recentInternational Phytoplasmologist WorkingGroup

• ISPP Task Force in action in southern Africa• Cape Saint Paul Wilt Disease of Coconut in

Ghana• Does systemic RNA silencing contribute to

systemic acquired resistance?• Plant Biotechnology and the Millennium

Goals• International Agricultural Research and the

Effects of Global and Climate Changes onPlant Diseases

• Search Tool for Identifying Web-sites Usefulfor Finding Organisms Harmful to Plants

• IFAD and “Making a Difference in Asia andthe Pacific”

• A Reaction to the Bombing of the BritishCouncil in Kabul

• Acknowledgements• Coming events

ISPP NEWSLETTER 41 (12) December 2011

In this issue:• ISPP Councilors Voting about Holding the

International Congress of Plant Pathology in2018

• Plant Science Research in the USA and theUK

• Human Pathogens on Plants• A New Molecular and Physiological Plant

Pathology Group• Activation of Signaling for Plant Immunity• Our Daily Bread, the Essential Norman

Borlaug• European Foundation for Plant Pathology• In the December 2011 Issue of “Food

Security”• Symbioses between Plants and Microbes• Salts of Phosphorous Acid and Managing

Bacterial Wilt in Tomato• Pyricularia anqualata and Banana Blast

Disease• Agreement among Himalayan Nations to

Collaborate on Climate• Food and Energy Security• Acknowledgements• Coming events

MSc position at University ofSaskatchewan

An MSc position is available in the Department ofPlant Sciences, University of Saskatchewan. Thestudent will conduct research on stripe rust ofwheat within the cereal and flax pathologyprogram. The research will involve examination ofhost-pathogen interactions between the pathogen,Puccinia striiformis and the host, Tritichum aestivumand other aspects of stripe rust management. Astudent stipend of up to $20,000 annually for twoyears is available.

Please contact Dr. Randy Kutcher,Crop Development CentreCollege of Agriculture and BioresourcesUniversity of Saskatchewan51 Campus DriveSaskatoon, SK S7N 5A8Tel.: 306 966-4951 Email: [email protected]

Submission Deadline for theMarch 2012 issue of CPS-SCPNews

PLEASE NOTE: The submission deadline for theMarch 2012 issue of CPS - SCP News is February 24,2012. If you send photographs for publication in theCPS-SCP News, please ensure that you indicate thatall individuals appearing in the photographs havegiven permission for their photographs to appear inthe newsletter. Photographs will not be published ifpermission has not been obtained from theindividuals involved.


Coreen Franke, EditorViterra Research and Development201 - 407 Downey RoadSaskatoon, SaskatchewanS7N 4L8Telephone/Téléphone: 306-668-6633Facsimile/Télécopieur: [email protected]

Jim Menzies, Associate EditorAgriculture and Agri-Food Canada/Agriculture etAgroalimentaire Canada195 Dafoe Road/195 Dafoe RoadWinnipeg, Manitoba/ Winnipeg (Manitoba)R3T 2M9Telephone/Téléphone: 204-983-5714Facsimile/Télécopieur: [email protected]

Contact the Editors

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CANADIAN PHYTOPATHOLOGICAL SOCIETY • SOCIÉTÉ CANADIENNE DE ... · Les progrès accomplis sont prometteurs, mais nous ne sommes pas encore sortis de l’auberge. La SCP continue