SPDN Newsletter August 2004

SPDN Newsletter August 2004

Thank you GA, NC, TX, LA, VA, AL, TN for sending in your subcontracts!

Others: Please get your subcontracts in as soon as possible - the funds will be released when we get your forms to the USDA folks! Remember - we are looking for shorter Plans of Work (2 pages, one page justification of last year's spending and one page of plans for this year's funding). Each state will have $36,000 to spend in the areas of Training and Education, IT, Diagnostics, and Entomology. The regional budget and related forms are available for use as templates (your “Total Request” should equal $36,000). Download the forms

Pink Hibiscus Mealybug Alert!

August 4, 2004: Florida Agriculture Commission Bronson releases a statement concerning the shipment of live Pink Hibiscus Mealybug (PHM), Maconellicoccus hirsutus to Louisiana. Please see the SPDN pest alert page: http://www.sepdn.org/DesktopModules/ViewDocument.aspx?DocumentID=2337

According to the Florida Department of Agriculture & Consumer Services, Division of Plant Industry (FDACS-DPI), hibiscus plants potentially infested with PHM may have been shipped from a Florida nursery to 30 states in the U.S. .

All appropriate State Department of Agriculture and USDA-APHIS personnel are aware of these plant shipments, and states are in the process of conducting trace forwards.

For more specific details concerning the status of PHM in your state, contact your State Department of Agriculture.

Growers, homeowners, and other from the general public concerned about PHM should contact their local extension service.

Please note Dr. Lance Osborne’s mealybug page: http://www.mrec.ifas.ufl.edu/lso/Mealybugs.htm. This page contains images of mealybug species that are sometimes confused with PHM, such as Hypogeococcus pungens (no common name), Paraccocus marginatus (papaya mealybug), and Ferrisia virgata (striped mealybug).

Please see the SPDN pest alert page for a field key to common mealybugs in Florida: http://www.sepdn.org/DesktopModules/ViewDocument.aspx?DocumentID=2337

Please see the following websites for more general information on PHM:

http://www.doacs.state.fl.us/pi/enpp/ento/pink.htm

http://creatures.ifas.ufl.edu/orn/mealybug/mealybug.htm

http://www.mrec.ifas.ufl.edu/lso/PinkMealybug.htm

Cycad Scale

Cycad scale, Aulacaspis yasumatsui, an exotic scale native to Thailand was first detected in Florida in 1996. In July 2004, cycad scale was detected at a location in Brunswick, GA. Since cycad scale’s initial introduction into Florida, it has been detected in the majority of Florida’s counties. For more information on cycad scale, please see: <http://www.doacs.state.fl.us/pi/enpp/ento/aulacaspis.html>

.Upcoming Education and Training Events

The SPDN will host First Detector Training session at the annual Horticultural Inspection Society, Southern Chapter (HISSC) meeting on September 13, 2004 in Baton Rouge, LA. A diverse group of speakers representing Louisiana State University, the University of Arkansas, and the University of Florida will be involved in the training that will include information about exotic pathogens and insects of concern to the southern region, quality and secure sample submission, and digitally assisted diagnosis. For more information about this training, please contact Amanda Hodges achodges@ifas.ufl.edu.

The University of Florida, as part of the State Agricultural Response Team (SART) training, will conduct SPDN first detector training for Florida personnel on September 9, 2004 in Kissimmee, FL and on September 23, 2004 in Belle Glade, FL. For more information please see the Florida SART webpage at: http://www.flsart.org/. North Carolina has also developed a state-level animal/agriculture response plan http://www.ncsart.org/. These two SART plans may serve as models for other states to develop SART initiatives. Don’t forgot that your state’s SPDN training could be incorporated into future SART sessions!

Sudden Oak Death Updates:

^NEWUpcoming Sudden Oak Death Training. Teleconference calls are underway to arrange training for each participating state. Funding is available for training and diagnostics – contact Carrie Harmon at clharmon@ufl.edu. It is estimated that there are 1.6 million plants already in homeowner landscapes that are from the infected nurseries. Public education will be key in the coming months.
21 states now have positive test results for Phytophthora ramorum - keep track of your sample costs! (send a spreadsheet of your trace-forward sample numbers and the tests conducted to clharmon@ufl.edu for the reimbursement process for trace-forwards. ^NEWWe will process the reimbursements on a first-come, first-served basis after August 31st.) If you are processing survey samples, make sure to talk to your State Department of Agriculture about funding/billing options.
For the most recent version of the P. ramorum diagnostic SOP, visit the Pest Alert page
^NEWAPHIS update, August 5, at http://www.aphis.usda.gov/ppq/ispm/sod/updates/update8-5-04.pdf Some new additions to the host list!
^NEWWaiting for PCR results? Beltsville is putting together a password-protected spreadsheet for checking on sample results. More information soon!
^NEWNew source of trace-forwards: Means Nursery in Oregon (See the Pest Alert page for the latest USDA update)
Let us know about updates! All 5 regional hub labs are standing by to provide surge relief to labs doing SOD testing. Please call Carrie to coordinate shipments at 352-392-3631 xt 254 or email at CLHarmon@ufl.edu.

APS meeting in Anaheim, NPDN open meeting. Thank you for participating! It was a pleasure to see so many Network faces. We hope to make this an annual event, as the dialogue was important and informative. Thanks for bringing your questions about training and diagnostics – your input makes our Network better!

Mark your calendars for the Third Annual Regional Meeting! November 4-5 in Atlanta, GA.

^NEWOnline registration is available at https://conference.ifas.ufl.edu/basic/spdn/reg.html.

Send your discussion topic ideas to clharmon@ufl.edu

Entomology workshop: The SPDN will host an intensive ‘Homoptera’ workshop http://conference.ifas.ufl.edu/homoptera for general diagnosticians and extension specialists in Gainesville, FL, from December 9-11, 2004. Sponsorship forms are also available on the website. For more information about the ‘Homoptera’ workshop, contact Amanda Hodges achodges@ifas.ufl.edu

First Detector and First Detector Educator testing: Scantrons are available and can be shipped to you on request. We can even do the grading and enter the registry information for you! Contact Amanda Hodges at (352) 392-1901 xt 122 or ACHodges@ifas.ufl.edu

Southern Plant Diagnostic Network (SPDN)
© Copyright University of Florida, IFAS All Rights Reserved