Resources Box 14.1

Where to find more information about crop diseases, crop losses and plant pathogens

The following papers discuss present and future challenges to agricultural production, including the impact of climate change on the environment.

Bebber, D.P. (2015). Range-expanding pests and pathogens in a warming world. Annual Review of Phytopathology, 53: 335-356. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-phyto-080614-120207.

Beza, E., Silva, J.V., Kooistra, L. & Reidsma, P. (2017). Review of yield gap explaining factors and opportunities for alternative data collection approaches. European Journal of Agronomy, 82: 206-222. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eja.2016.06.016.

Fones, H., Fisher, M. & Gurr, S. (2017). Emerging fungal threats to plants and animals challenge agriculture and ecosystem resilience. In: The Fungal Kingdom, (eds J. Heitman, B. Howlett, P. Crous, E. Stukenbrock, T. James & N. Gow), pp. 787-809. Washington, DC: ASM Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1128/microbiolspec.FUNK-0027-2016.

Juroszek, P. & von Tiedemann, A. (2015). Linking plant disease models to climate change scenarios to project future risks of crop diseases - a review. Journal of Plant Diseases and Protection, 122: 3-15.  DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03356525.

Reidsma, P. & Jeuffroy, M.-H. (2017). Farming systems analysis and design for sustainable intensification: new methods and assessments. European Journal of Agronomy, 82: 203-205. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eja.2016.11.007.

Stergiopoulos, I. & Gordon, T.R (2014). Cryptic fungal infections: the hidden agenda of plant pathogens. Frontiers in Plant Science, 5: 506. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fpls.2014.00506.

van Dijk, M., Morley, T.,  Jongeneel, R., van Ittersum, M., Reidsma, P. & Ruben, R. (2017). Disentangling agronomic and economic yield gaps: an integrated framework and application. Agricultural Systems, 154: 90-99. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agsy.2017.03.004.

More information about plant pathogens can be found in the British Society of Plant Pathology’s Pathogen Profiles, which are regular features, providing an up to-date overview of the latest research on a particular pathogen. A list of profile summaries is available at http://www.bspp.org.uk/ [go to ‘Journals’ and then click on ‘Pathogen Profiles’].

View the Royal Horticultural Society’s Diseases & Disorders pages at this URL: https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/plant-problems/diseases-disorders

Several US Universities place their teaching materials online. Among our favourites are the following:

The Master Gardener Resources in Plant Diseases at the Department of Plant Pathology of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, USA at this URL: https://pddc.wisc.edu/master-gardener-resources/

Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology at Pennsylvania State University Plant Disease Identification and Control slide shows, blog posts and extension programs listed at: https://extension.psu.edu/pests-and-diseases/pest-disease-and-weed-identification/plant-disease-identification-and-control

The Plant Diseases pages on EDIS (Electronic Data Information Source) of the University of Florida’s IFAS (Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences) Extension Program at: http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/topic_plant_diseases

The ultimate source of food and agriculture data is the Statistics Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations at http://www.fao.org/faostat/

Be warned: there’s a LOT of statistical data here. FAOSTAT provides free access to food and agriculture data for over 245 countries and territories and covers all FAO regional groupings with data from 1961 to the most recent year available (which usually means to the year before the current one).

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This is a Resources Box from the 21st Century Guidebook to Fungi: © David Moore, Geoffrey D. Robson and Anthony P. J. Trinci 2019