Seen something unusual? MAKE A REPORT
This week KVH attended the OPC winter Pitstop event in the Hawkes Bay, and ran a short workshop with growers on the value of good records for all plant material movements on and off their orchards. Growers considered how well they currently record budwood, plant and pollen movements, and whether they thought they could trace these across current and previous years.
KVH highlighted the fact that many high-risk diseases are spread by human intervention with symptoms unseen until some time after disease transfer. Monitoring for the unusual and good traceability were both seen as cornerstones of good biosecurity and steps every grower could take to protect their valuable orchard asset.
KVH also visited orchards to discuss Psa infection removal during winter pruning. In blocks where Psa was more widespread growers had monitored and tagged exudate and large cankers for removal ahead of the main pruning team. Staff familiar with symptoms focussed on good tool hygiene, ensuring wounds were being well protected. Provision of two sets of pruning tools, sanitiser to rest tools not in use, and wire brushes to clear blades of plant material were seen as a strong insurance in reducing infection transfer.
Read the KVH winter View the winter flyer on protecting your investment and managing biosecurity risks here.
Image: tagged Psa exudate and canker on a Hawkes Bay orchard.
KVH investigates reports of unusual symptoms to identify and manage any biosecurity risks.
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