North Queensland Capsicum growers take disease management masterclass

Seminis pepper breeder Brian Just has spent time with growers talking through effective disease management techniques as he officially wrapped up his 2018 Australian tour on 29 June 2018.

“It’s always great having Brian back in Australia to share with growers his expertise on disease management, genetics and breeding priorities,” said Monsanto Vegetable Seeds General Manager, Ben Hoodless. “In particular, Bacterial Spot has been a real issue for capsicum growers this year, and I think Brian’s visit has been a great opportunity for growers to have a deeper conversation on disease management and resistance.”

Just currently breeds capsicums for the Australian, Western U.S., and Mexican open-field markets as well as Mexican green-house markets. He says within the next ten years Australian capsicum growers can expect greater advancement in disease resistances in new varieties which will be extremely beneficial.

“Growers in the QLD region will start to see an improvement in yield, fruit uniformity and plant type,” said Brian. “We are already seeing some material come through the pipeline offering high resistance to all known 11 Bacterial Spot races, and TSWV. We’re also seeing some promising independent results with nematode population control coming through our varieties.”

For more information, please contact: