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Results for Lady Finger fruit rejects

Posted on 2020-05-25 by Better Bananas

Results for Lady Finger fruit rejects

Subtropical banana reject analysis

The following are the results for reject Lady Finger fruit assessed as part of the Subtropical Banana Reject Analysis. The figure below shows the proportion of reject fruit that fell within each of the defect categories. As can be seen, pre-harvest physical defects were responsible for the rejection of 83% of all Lady Finger fruit assessed. Pest and disease defects accounted for 10%, whilst post-harvest defects were the cause of 7% of reject fruit. As was the case with results from the Cavendish assessment, pre-harvest defects again offers the greatest opportunity for improving fruit quality and reducing the number of rejected fruit.

Let’s take a closer look at the defect types resulting in the rejection of Lady Finger bananas. The graph below shows the 15 most prevalent defect types resulting in rejection of Lady Finger bananas. In descending order from left to right they account for almost 90% of all reject fruit for this variety. Again, there are several defects that cannot be prevented or doing so would require too much time and resources to make it financially beneficial. For example, misshapen fruit and doubles or fused fruit cannot be prevented to a large degree as they are caused by factors beyond our control. However, animal damage, rub, pruning damage and damage caused by bunch pests are issues that could addressed through changes to on-farm practices.

It is worth noting that misshapen fruit occurs more commonly in Lady Finger than Cavendish due to varietal differences in fruit development. However, it is believed that the dry conditions experienced across the NSW growing regions during the study significantly worsened the problem, contributing to the high proportion of rejects resulting from misshapen fruit. Further reject analyses under ‘normal’ growing conditions or over a longer period would need to be undertaken to confirm this result.

The aim of this reject analysis study was to identify the predominant causes for rejection of fruit by growers within our subtropical banana growing regions. With a better understanding it will now allow resources to be best prioritised to address, demonstrate &/or trial innovative practices to reduce these defects. Overall reducing the quantity of fruit rejected through the implementation of cost effective practices will increase profitability.

More information...

A poster is now available showing common quality issues and packing guidelines for subtropical banana growers. To receive a hard copy or for more information contact NSW DPI Industry Development Officer Tom Flanagan on (02) 6626 1352 or email tom.flanagan@dpi.nsw.gov.au

NSW DPI would like to acknowledge all growers who agreed to participate in the study, Matt Weinert, Leanne Davis from NSW DPI and Valerie Shrubb from AGRIC for undertaking the research.

This research has been funded as part of the Subtropical Banana Development and Extension Program (BA16007), which is funded by Hort Innovation, using the banana research and development levy and co-investment from the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries and WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

Results for Cavendish rejects

Posted on 2020-05-24 by Better Bananas

Results for Cavendish fruit rejects

Subtropical banana reject analysis

The following are the results for reject Cavendish fruit, assessed as part of the Subtropical Banana Reject Analysis. The figure below shows the proportion of reject Cavendish fruit that fell into each of the three defect categories. As you can see 62% of all reject Cavendish fruit was due to pre-harvest physical defects. This was a far greater percentage than either post-harvest defects (27%) or pest and disease defects (11%). This gives us a good indication where the majority of the damage is occurring and highlights an opportunity for growers to greatly reduce rejects by addressing pre-harvest physical defects.

Although this chart provides us with a start, it does not give us the most complete picture. It does not tell us which specific defect types are causing the most rejects or where best to focus efforts to reduce the number of reject fruit. Taking a closer look, the graph below shows the 15 most common defect types in descending order from left to right across all three defect categories, which accounted for 90% of all reject Cavendish fruit in the study.

It must be noted that the high proportion of rejects resulting from misshapen fruit is believed to be associated with the dry conditions experienced across the NSW growing regions during the study. Further reject analyses under ‘normal’ growing conditions or over a longer period would need to be undertaken to confirm this result.

Within this list there are some defect types that can be relatively easily improved with changes to pre or post-harvest practices, such as bruising and de-handing damage. Some other defects such as misshapen fruit, fused fruit and November dumps are caused or attributed to factors that we have limited control over (e.g. environmental conditions). This list provides us with the information we need to be able to prioritise the development of research, development and extension activities aimed at reducing Cavendish rejects in the subtropics.

More information…

NSW DPI would like to acknowledge all growers who agreed to participate in the study, Matt Weinert, Leanne Davis from NSW DPI and Valerie Shrubb from AGRIC for undertaking the research.

This research has been funded as part of the Subtropical Banana Development and Extension Program (BA16007), which is funded by Hort Innovation, using the banana research and development levy and co-investment from the New South Wales Department of Primary Industries and WA Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

Shanara Veivers

Posted on 2020-04-15 by Better Bananas

Shanara Veivers

Diversity and hard work paves the path for a rewarding career in horticulture.

It’s not every day you find a job that sees you out and about doing field work, running lab experiments, organising and facilitating events, and visiting banana growers on farm. This is all in a day’s work for Research Horticulturist Shanara Veivers, who has gained a diverse range of experience since starting with the Department approximately four years ago.

As an integral member of the banana extension team, Shanara has been responsible for managing an innovation trial based at the South Johnstone Research Facility. This has involved investigating a number of ‘out of the box’ concepts focused on increasing agronomic and environmental performance of banana farming systems. Some of her research areas have included the effects of different de-suckering methods, ground covers, ‘softer’ chemical options, and more recently the use of entomopathogenic nematodes for the control of banana weevil borer and bunch pests.

Shanara Veivers
Research Horticulturist
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
Ecosciences Precinct
Brisbane

When she isn’t working in the trial, Shanara’s time is spent undertaking farm visits, conducting small demonstration trials as well as planning and organising extension events for industry, including the National Banana Roadshows.

Growing up in Queensland’s beautiful Far North, Shanara has always felt an affinity with the environment and agriculture. It’s not surprising that this interest led her to complete a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Environmental Science, at James Cook University in Townsville. Shanara says, ‘Growing up in the local region, where agriculture, particularly banana production is so important for our community, the most exciting part of my role is being a part of the banana farming community. Working with leading scientists and industry stakeholders and being able to provide growers with the latest R&D as well as practical solutions for their farming operations gives me the greatest satisfaction.’

In recognition of Shanara’s contribution to banana research, development and extension activities, the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries has nominated her for the 2020 Queensland Women in STEM Prize.
Away from work, Shanara enjoys being outdoors and keeping active. She said without a doubt bananas are a staple fruit at home, with banana pancakes topping the list as her favourite banana recipe.

Kathy Grice

Posted on 2020-04-15 by Better Bananas

Kathy Grice

Horticulture's jewel in the north!

For horticultural producers, plant diseases can be the bane of your existence. That’s why many turn to Kathy Grice for assistance. Working in plant pathology for the past 33 years, Kathy offers a wealth of knowledge and experience to help diagnose plant diseases as well as providing management options. With her career based in Far North Queensland a large portion of Kathy’s time has been working on solutions for Australian banana growers.

Kathy’s work is primarily in diagnostics. Banana samples sent to her lab in Mareeba vary from leaf and fruit disorders to corm and root diseases. The primary objective of Kathy’s work in diagnostics is to ensure exotic plant pathogens are not present in our local banana industry. The importance of her diagnostic work is best exemplified by her key role in the black Sigatoka response that resulted in the successful eradication of the disease in Far North Queensland in the early-mid 2000s.

More recently, Kathy and colleague Peter Trevorrow have focussed their research on the post-harvest quality issue of Crown end rot. As part of this work they have looked into ‘softer’ control options as an alternative to registered fungicides, with some biological products showing promising results.

Kathy Grice
Senior Experimentalist (Plant Pathology)
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
Mareeba Research Station, Mareeba, Qld

Recently Kathy was awarded the prestigious ‘Lester Burgess Diagnostics and Extension Award’ for her contribution to her field of plant pathology and service to horticultural industries.

When asked what she enjoyed most about her work, Kathy responded, ‘The most exciting or rewarding part of any research is being able to provide a grower/s or an industry with a solution to a particular problem or issue. I think I enjoy the variety in the work (a mix of laboratory and field work) and learning new ways of tackling research.’

Kathy is a Mareeba resident and an amateur twitcher, so you may find her bird watching in her free time. She also enjoys yoga and travelling overseas to experience different cultures and food.

Katelyn Ferro

Posted on 2019-07-19 by Better Bananas

Katelyn Robertson

After finishing an Ag Science degree at the University of Queensland’s Gatton campus, Katie made the move to Far North Queensland, accepting a research horticulturist role at South Johnstone with the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries. Over the past three years, working with the banana research and development team, Katie’s main focus has been research into Panama disease.

Katie is currently working in banana variety research, assessing the post-harvest characteristics of fruit from the Goldfinger mutagenesis trial. This work is aimed at finding a commercially viable banana variety that has resistance to Panama disease tropical race 4.

We asked Katie what is the most exciting part of her research and what she enjoys the most. “I’ve come to realise how unique banana plants are compared to most other crops and, although often frustrating, I like the challenge this presents and the problem solving required to develop research methods tailored to its individuality. I really enjoy working on impactful projects where the outcome of the research could benefit Australian banana growers.”

Katie’s childhood was spent in Delaneys Creek in the Sunshine Coast hinterland, but lived in Brisbane for all her schooling years. Her love for the outdoors sees her hiking North Queensland’s beautiful national parks. Katie is also keen to learn new skills and is currently learning how to play electric guitar. Her favourite banana recipe is Banana ice-cream, made from frozen banana that is blended until creamy.

Research Horticulturist
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
Centre for Wet Tropics Agriculture, South Johnstone, Qld

Agronomic evaluation of new varieties – South Johnstone

Posted on 2019-07-19 by Better Bananas

Latest update...

The first ratoon crop is now completed in the variety trial and the results are encouraging with:

The TBRI Cavendish selection Asia Pacific #3 showing comparable yields and fruit length to Williams over the two crop cycles, combined with Panama disease TR4 resistance much better than Formosana in the NT trials.
Continued good performance of the four Cavendish selections from Rahan Meristem with yields and finger length equivalent to Williams, with at least two of the selections being significantly shorter in stature.
The Dwarf Cavendish selection Brier, from the Canary Islands, having yields and fruit length equivalent to Williams, while being significantly shorter in stature.

Click here for more information on first ratoon observations and results

About the trial

Growers are keeping a keen eye on the 32 varieties included in the latest agronomic evaluation at South Johnstone. This is the first step at looking at new introductions that may have commercial potential for the Australian banana industry.

This research forms a significant part of the project Improved Plant Protection for the Banana Industry (BA16001), looking at the agronomic traits as well as pest and disease tolerance of imported varieties. This project provides for 3 variety assessment trials across Australia at Alstonville (previously Duranbah NSW), South Johnstone (Qld) and Coastal Plains (NT), assessing resistance to Panama disease Race 1 and TR4, agronomic performance, cold tolerance and yellow Sigatoka resistance.

Several of the varieties included in the current South Johnstone trial are also being screened in the Northern Territory to determine or confirm resistance to TR4.

Varieties were planted in September 2018 and assessment of agronomic traits will be collected over three crop cycles and a yellow Sigatoka leaf spot screening in the fourth cycle. Several new varieties that have shown resistance to TR4 overseas are included in the evaluation.
With an agreement now in place with the Taiwan Banana Research Institute, it will be possible to progress some of the better performing Taiwanese varieties to on-farm trials. The ability to grow these varieties as part of on-farm trials will allow for a greater number of plants than what is possible at South Johnstone Research Facility.

Varieties being evaluated

A suite of Taiwanese selections of Cavendish present in Australia. Also included is a selection made in Australia from a former introduction.
Agro-biotechnology company Rahan Meristem imported four of their elite Cavendish selections into Australia from Israel— Gal, Jaffa and two selections of Adi. The main features include reduced plant stature and large well-structured bunches. These selections are proving popular in various export production zones around the globe. However, these selections are not claimed to have any resistance to Panama disease tropical race 4 (TR4). North Queensland producers that have seen them growing overseas have been keen to see them evaluated by the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries (DAF) for some time. Rahan Meristem own these varieties and have agreed that results from our evaluations can be made publicly available.
Four hybrids from the breeding program of CIRAD in the French West Indies. Overseas these have shown resistance to leaf disease and Panama disease race 1. Three of these hybrids have shown good resistance to Panama disease TR4 in our Northern Territory trials completed last year.
Two Cavendish selections from the Canary Islands. These selections of Dwarf Cavendish form the basis of their 400,000 t/yr. export industry to mainland Europe.

A list of varieties being evaluated is now available.

Observations and results

Observations and results are now available for both plant crop and first ratoon.

What's next?

Harvest of second ratoon bunches is now nearly completed. About 10% of the data plants were damaged in early March due to the strong winds brought on by the tropical low (which later developed into Cyclone Niran). Due to the development stage of the Taiwanese Cavendish varieties, these suffered the highest losses. Come November/December the next step will be to nurse sucker the block to synchronize development for leaf spot resistance assessment in the 2022 wet season.

In addition, a new trial was planted at South Johnstone in October 2020. We are evaluating some new varieties which have cleared quarantine since the present trial was established in 2018, along with some improved selections which have been identified in Australia.

Field walks of the trial have provided the opportunity for growers and industry stakeholders to view bunches hanging during the plant and first ratoon crops.

More information...

If you would like further information feel free to contact the Better Bananas team via email at betterbananas@daf.qld.gov.au.

This research has been funded as part of the project Improved Plant Protection for the Banana Industry (BA16001), which is funded by Hort Innovation, using the banana research and development levy, co-investment from the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

Images of Panama disease tropical race 4

Posted on 2019-07-04 by Better Bananas

Images of Panama disease tropical race 4 (TR4)

Images courtesy of Department of Agriculture and Fisheries

Meet a researcher — Jeff Daniells

Posted on 2018-12-13 by Better Bananas

Jeff Daniells

Jeff has been working with bananas for the past 37 years as a research horticulturist with the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries based at South Johnstone. He is passionate about bananas and currently works on a number of important industry projects looking at disease resistance and agronomics of alternative varieties — particularly those varieties which have some tolerance to Panama disease tropical race 4.

Growing up in Brisbane Jeff completed his Master’s degree at the University of Queensland and has always had a hands-on approach to learning about bananas. In fact, prior to starting his career, he meticulously kept harvest data (weights, hands and finger numbers) for a stool of Lady Fingers in parent’s backyard. Some call this destiny!

Jeff enjoys Saba (Pisang Gajih Merah) bananas boiled in the jacket served with meat and vegetables and in his spare time enjoys fishing and playing tennis with friends and family.

Principal Horticulturist
Department of Agriculture and Fisheries
Centre for Wet Tropics Agriculture, South Johnstone, Qld

Reducing inoculum – field trials

Posted on 2018-02-23 by Better Bananas

Field trials - reducing inoculum

The use of high rates of urea to reduce disease inoculum levels of plants infected with Panama disease has been investigated. Researchers have looked at the effect of applying urea to both the soil surface surrounding infected plants as well as infected pseudostems.

Two field trials conducted at Duranbah in New South Wales used a site infested with Panama disease race 1. In the first field trial, Dwarf Ducasse plants showing symptoms of Panama disease race 1 were cut off at ground level. The growing point was then gouged out and a 1 m² area was treated around each plant. All gouged corms were treated with 200 g of urea and the 1 m2 areas around the plants were treated with either:

urea (1 kg/m²) and covered with black plastic
urea (1 kg/m²), watered in (10 L) and covered with black plastic
urea (1 kg/m²), Basamid® (500 g/m²), watered in (10 L) and covered with black plastic
plastic only
untreated.

Soil samples were taken from the treatment areas 6 and 15 days after the treatments were applied. The soil was analysed to determine the ammonium content in surface (0-5 cm) and subsurface (5-15 cm) soil and the populations of Fusarium oxysporum in the subsurface samples (5-15 cm).

So what happened under these treatments?

As expected the ammonium levels were significantly greater in the soil treated with urea. As a result the number of Fusarium oxysporum spores in the soil (including the strain that causes Panama disease race 1) measured by the number of colony forming units (cfu) was significantly reduced.

The table below shows the levels of ammonium (ppm) in the soil 6 and 15 days after treatment application.

Means in each column with the same letter are not significantly different at 5% level (P<0.001). For example at 15 days after treatment at surface depth (0-5 cm) there was no significant difference between untreated and plastic. However, there was a significant difference between urea and all the other treatments (15 days at surface depth 0-5 cm).

The graph below shows the significant reduction in cfu under the urea treatments.

The second field trial investigated the method of cutting up infected pseudostem material and placing it into bags with urea. To test this technique Dwarf Ducasse plants infected with Panama disease race 1 were cut into 15 cm length and placed inside heavy duty plastic garbage bags. Some of the bags included 1 kg of urea and some bags contained no urea. After 6 weeks pieces of vascular tissue were plated out to determine the survival of the fungus. There was no recovery of the fungus that causes race 1 in any of the bags which were treated with urea. There was some reduction in survival of the fungus in the untreated bags, but the pathogen was still recovered.

So what does this all mean...

These field trials confirm that the current method for dealing with infected plants does significantly reduce the amount of inoculum in banana paddocks infested with Panama disease.

For more information about this work contact the better bananas team: betterbananas@daf.qld.gov.au or 13 25 23.

This trial was funded as part of Biosecurity Queensland’s Panama TR4 Program and the Fusarium Wilt Tropical Race 4 – Biosecurity and Sustainable Practices project (BA14013). This project (BA14013) was funded by Hort Innovation, using the banana research and development levy, co-investment from the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.

Reducing inoculum – Lab trials

Posted on 2018-02-22 by Better Bananas

Lab trials - reducing inoculum

To reduce disease inoculum levels, researchers have investigated the practice of using high rates of urea on the soil surface immediately surrounding infected plants.

Lab trials at South Johnstone used a soil bioassay with spores of Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. cubense (Foc), the fungus that causes Panama disease race 1. This was used as surrogate for tropical race 4. The inoculated soil was treated with one of the following treatments:

‘control’ – no urea or lime treatment
urea (rate equal to 0.5 kg/m²)
lime (rate equal to 0.5 kg/m²)
both lime and urea (rate equal to 0.5 kg/m²).

Interestingly, Foc was not recovered from soil that was treated with urea and the urea/lime combination. Foc was however recovered from soil treated with lime only, proving the application of lime on its own as ineffective at reducing inoculum levels.

Outcomes...

Lab trial results have shown that both urea and the combination of urea and lime at the specified rates are effective at killing the spores that cause Panama disease race 1.

Further lab investigations

Further trial work has evaluated the effectiveness of lower application rates of urea as well as chemical alternatives that are suggested to be toxic to Foc. The same bioassay using soil in jars was used to determine the effectiveness of the following treatments:

potassium chlorate @ 4, 8 and 16% (w/v)
sodium nitrite at 200, 400 and 800 ppm
nitrite at 200 and 400 ppm
lower rates of urea (rate equal to 0.031, 0.062, 0.125, 0.25 and 0.5 kg/m²).

These investigations showed that urea applied at 0.062 kg/m² or greater prevented Foc recovery from soil. All the other chemical alternatives were not effective at reducing the recovery rate of Foc.

Additional trials have investigated the effectiveness of different urea rates (between 0.031 and 0.062 kg/m²) and further explored alternative sources of ammonium. This time the effect of urea, ammonium nitrate + potassium hydroxide and aqueous ammonia were assessed. The trial showed that ammonia (NH₃) from any source that produces a concentration equal to or above 2500 ppm was effective at preventing Foc from being recovered from the soil.

So what does this all mean?

These lab trials show the current methods for dealing with infected plants using urea (1 kg per square metre) would significantly help in reducing the amount of inoculum in infested banana paddocks. The trials further show that ammonia, rather than other gasses produced during the breakdown of urea, is likely to be responsible for the toxic effect on the fungus.

For more information about this work contact our better bananas team on 13 25 23 or email: betterbananas@daf.qld.gov.au

This trial was funded as part the Fusarium Wilt Tropical Race 4 – Biosecurity and Sustainable Practices (BA14013) project, which was funded by Hort Innovation, using the banana research and development levy, co-investment from the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries and contributions from the Australian Government. Hort Innovation is the grower-owned, not-for-profit research and development corporation for Australian horticulture.