What was it all about?

This project supported two Australian research plant pathologists to attend the 8th World Avocado Congress (WAC) in Lima, Peru in September 2015, followed by a two-day study tour of avocado orchards near Santiago, Chile.

The aim of the trip was to present recent Australian research outcomes to an international audience. Attendance at the conference also provided the opportunity for knowledge from the international avocado industry to be gathered and shared with the Australian sector so as to build capacity for long-term avocado research leadership.

The University of Queensland’s Dr Liz Dann presented findings on Phellinus noxius from research project Improving yield and quality in avocado through disease management, phase 2 (AV10001) and rootstock evaluation from previous avocado industry projects.

Student Louisamarie Parkinson also presented results from her PhD study on black root rot pathogens of avocado, which is supported by project Investigating tree mortality during early field establishment (AV14012).

The two researchers attended four days of conference presentations that helped build networks and knowledge to benefit the avocado industry in Australia. This included a field tour where they visited two orchards close to Lima. One of these was a 640 ha high density avocado orchard with its own outdoor nursery.