Plant Protection Science - Online first

Effect of biofumigation on soil-borne pathogen Rhizoctonia solaniOriginal Paper

Ludmila Holková, Jhonny Alba-Mejía, Barbora Jílková, Věra Loubová, Markéta Kuljová, Martin Kmoch

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/186/2025-PPS  

Rhizoctonia solani is an important fungal pathogen that causes a disease technically known as black scurf of potato. Integrated pest management favours the use of sustainable biological methods, such as "biofumigation". This field study aimed to evaluate, in two independent experiments, the antimicrobial role of crushed mustard seed residues on the abundance of the fungal pathogen R. solani in soil. Potatoes were grown in soil inoculated with R. solani mycelium under greenhouse and field conditions, and soil infection levels were assessed by qPCR at the end of the growing season. In both culture conditions, a statistically significant...

Penicillium allii - a new postharvest pathogen of onion bulbs in SerbiaShort Communication

Stefan Stošić, Danijela Ristić, Svetlana Živković

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/131/2025-PPS  

Onion (Allium cepa L.), a member of the Amaryllidaceae family, is among the oldest and most widely cultivated crops, valued both in cuisine and traditional medicine. Between 2019 and 2021, onion bulbs showing blue-green mould symptoms were collected from storage facilities in Serbia. The isolated fungi were identified and characterised using a combination of morpho-physiological, molecular, phylogenetic, and pathogenicity approaches. Results from morphological and multilocus genetic analyses confirmed that the isolates belonged to Penicillium allii. Pathogenicity assays demonstrated that this species is a pathogen of onion. This is the...

Burkholderia glumae in rice: Climate-driven epidemiology, advanced detection techniques and AI-enhanced predictive forecasting modelsReview

Hamood U Rehman, Norida Mazlan, Siti Izera Ismail, Nur Azura Husin

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/33/2025-PPS  

Bacterial panicle blight (BPB), caused by Burkholderia glumae, is a major and rising threat to global rice production. Its severity is heightened by climate change, with outbreaks driven by high temperatures and humidity during the vulnerable flowering stage. Current management is hampered by delayed detection and a disconnect between diagnostic tools and predictive models. This review synthesises advances across climatology, molecular biology, and computational agriculture to address this gap. We analyse climate-driven disease dynamics, precise molecular diagnostics, and the emergence of AI for real-time image-based detection and weather-based...

First detection of Eremothecium coryli, a plant pathogenic yeast transmitted by Halyomorpha halys, in the Czech RepublicShort Communication

Tomáš Tonka, František Lorenc, Jana Ouředníčková, Oldřich Pultar

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/64/2025-PPS  

We report the first detection of the plant pathogenic yeast Eremothecium coryli in the Czech Republic and identify the invasive brown marmorated stink bug, Halyomorpha halys, as a vector. E. coryli causes yeast spot diseases in crops such as soybeans, hazelnuts, and tomatoes, primarily in tropical and subtropical regions. The yeast was identified in the foregut of H. halys specimens collected in a cherry orchard near the hazelnut shrubs using PCR amplification and sequencing of the ITS and LSU gene regions. Phylogenetic analysis confirmed the identity of E. coryli and its association with H....

The first record of Cacopsylla pulchella (Löw, 1877) (Hemiptera: Psyllidae) in SlovakiaShort Communication

Ján Kollár, Ladislav Bakay

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/84/2025-PPS  

In recent years, several allochthonous species from the order Hemiptera have been detected in Slovakia. Most of them are pests of ornamental plants, reducing their ornamental value. In May 2024, adults of Cacopsylla pulchella (Löw, 1877) were recorded at the Arboretum Mlyňany, and the following year this pest was found in 3 additional localities (Nové Zámky, Nitra, Cabaj-Čápor). In addition to adults, eggs and nymphs were also found on Cercis siliquastrum, C. canadensis and C. chinensis. In 2025, a growing population of this insect pest was found, which can cause significant damage to Cercis specimens. Further monitoring...

Weed control in kale in terms of reducing herbicide useOriginal Paper

Zbigniew Anyszka, Joanna Golian

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/46/2025-PPS  

In studies conducted in 2018–2020 on transplant kale, methods of weed control, including mechanical weeding, flame weeding, mechanical weeding combined with flame weeding, and herbicide use, were tested. Chemical control was based on the use of metamitron alone before planting; metamitron before planting, followed by pyridate 1–3 weeks after planting; pyridate alone at full rate and at a reduced dose with the addition of adjuvant; and pyridate using the split-application method at 14-day intervals. During the studies, weed control, the number and biomass of weeds, secondary weed infestation, the response of kale to non-chemical methods...

Spray-induced gene silencing in the battle against pathogens, pests and weeds on our fields – soon reality or still a sci-fi?Review

Iveta Vachová, Jhonny Stalyn Hernández Orozco, Tereza Kalistová, Guy Smagghe, Martin Janda

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/138/2025-PPS  

Agriculture faces ongoing challenges from pathogens, pests and weed threats that are amplified by climate change, intensive monoculture farming practices, and regulatory restrictions limiting traditional chemical treatments. To enhance resilience, innovative solutions are urgently needed. One promising strategy is RNA interference (RNAi), a natural mechanism for gene silencing. Among RNAi-based approaches, spray-induced gene silencing (SIGS) stands out for its ability to deliver double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) directly to eukaryotic organisms, modulating gene expression to suppress harmful species. Recent research demonstrates that appropriately designed...

Antimicrobial Compounds from Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and Lacticaseibacillus paracasei inhibited growth of Ralstonia syzygii subsp. celebesensis (RSC), causal pathogen of banana blood diseaseOriginal Paper

Michell Kah Ven Sam, Roslina Jawan, Nur Sulastri Jaffar, Khim Phin Chong

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/67/2025-PPS  

Banana blood disease is a banana wilt disease caused by Ralstonia syzygii subsp. celebesensis (RSC) poses a serious threat to banana plantations, particularly in Indonesia and Malaysia. Yet, the current control methods are inadequate to mitigate the disease. Biological control agents (BCAs) offer a promising solution by using beneficial microorganisms to control pathogens. Among BCAs, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) have gained increasing attention in agriculture due to their ability to produce a variety of antimicrobial compounds. This study investigates the antimicrobial substances produced by Lactiplantibacillus plantarum and...

Exploring the biocontrol efficiency of indigenous entomopathogenic fungus on Cadra cautella (Lepidoptera, Pyralidae) larvae in controlled laboratory conditionsOriginal Paper

Mureed Husain, Abdalsalam Omer Osman, Abdulrahman Saad Aldawood

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/85/2025-PPS  

Cadra cautella (Walker, 1863) is a global pest of agricultural stored commodities, particularly date fruits, in the field and storage. To reduce C. cautella populations in stored agricultural goods, it is recommended to use ecologically friendly methods rather than chemical treatments. In this regard, current research evaluated the efficacy of various indigenous strains of the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana (Bals.-Criv.). Vuill. (1912), fungal isolates against C. cautella last-instar larvae under laboratory conditions. The last instar larvae were incubated in Petri plates with dry Beauveria bassiana inoculum...

From images to insights: Using a convolutional neural network to improve powdery mildew severity detection in mungbeanOriginal Paper

Pitchakon Papan, Witsarut Chueakhunthod, Chanwit Kaewkasi, Wanploy Jinagool, Akkawat Tharapreuksapong, Teerayoot Girdthai, Kanlayanee Sawangsalee, Piyada Alisha Tantasawat

Plant Protect. Sci., X:X | DOI: 10.17221/15/2025-PPS  

To efficiently identify powdery mildew (PM) severity in mungbean leaves, we developed a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) approach and validated its effectiveness against human evaluation. We fine-tuned an EfficientNet-B3 pre-trained model, which, in our related studies, performed better than re-implemented Inception V3 models. The CNN was trained on 90% of the images (2 880) for training and 10% (320) for validation, with data augmentation applied using Python and TensorFlow. The model obtained 82.10% and 73.03% as training and validation accuracies after 14 epochs, respectively. Further analysis with an additional 15 datasets revealed PM disease...