Virginia Cooperative Extension

Pathogen local adaptation shapes Pierce’s disease of grapevines outcomes under field conditions

ABSTRACT Climate change is broadly expected to increase the range of many plant diseases, yet the current status of local thermal adaptation in many pathogens is poorly understood. Xylella fastidiosa ( Xf ) is a global bacterial plant pathogen that causes Pierce’s disease (PD) of...

Whole orchard recycling in California's Central Valley: Benefits, management, and adoption

Abstract Whole orchard recycling (WOR) has become a common practice in California (CA) orchards and vineyards due to declining options for agricultural biomass disposal. WOR is the process by which entire orchards or vineyards are shredded into chips, spread onto the soil surface...

When mulch burns: fire risks at the wildland–urban interface

Background Mulch is widely used for landscaping in wildland–urban interface (WUI) communities but can act as a fuelbed that facilitates fire spread from vegetation to structures. Aims Although prior laboratory studies have investigated mulch ignition thresholds, few have examined...