Ms. Jamina Gabrielle Bondad1,2, Dr. Jeremy Whish2, Dr. Susan Sprague2, Assoc. Prof. Kara Barry1, Assoc. Prof. Matthew Harrison1
1University of Tasmania, Australia, 2CSIRO, Australia
Biography:
PhD Candidate from University of Tasmania
Agricultural pests and diseases are widely acknowledged as major constraints to global food production systems, and therefore require inclusion of their effects to address crop losses. This has been a challenge in the agricultural modelling community. The few existing models that account for the biophysical impact of pests are often based on a yield reduction approach via external visual symptoms. This fails to capture the pest response to agro-ecological conditions. A process-based modelling approach is more suitable for capturing a realistic representation of pest-host interactions in the field, as it highlights the biological modelling of the pest lifecycle and how it interacts with the crop’s lifecycle.
Abstract:
The objective of this study was to construct an integrated model encompassing pest-crop-weather-management dynamics within the APSIM Next Generation framework, using the economically important blackleg disease (Leptosphaeria maculans) and canola (Brassica napus) as a case study. The research focuses on the monocyclic phase of disease progression, and each stage of disease development interacts with the environment, crop, and potential preventive measures integrated within the APSIM framework.
The case study of blackleg on canola demonstrates how crop management practices, varietal resistance, timing of disease infection relative to crop growth stage, and agrometeorological conditions collectively influence the development of blackleg inoculum on stubble and the severity of crown canker. Furthermore, this study uncovers the fundamental physiological effects of the disease on crop productivity which could enable the transition of crop-pest models previously reliant on symptoms to be more dynamic.