Jun 6, 2025 | Events Category, News
Only 10 days to go until the second Australasian Myrtle Rust Conference (16-17 June) with Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research and Waipapa Taumata Rau University of Auckland.
The conference program (including speaker abstracts) has been released (download here), as well as links for the free virtual attendance (here).
The conference themes are:
- Community-led action
- New technologies, solutions, and research insights
– Part 1: Tools and fungal genetics
– Part 2: Environmental and microbial insights - Species conservation
- Early career initiatives and research
Head on over to the conference website for all the details. We’re looking forward to seeing you online for what’s sure to be a fantastic conference!
Mar 28, 2025 | Events Category
Many of Australasia’s best-known and most highly valued native trees – from Australia’s eucalypts to New Zealand’s pōhutukawa – are in the family Myrtaceae. Many species in this family urgently need protection from myrtle rust, a disease caused by the globally dispersed pathogen Austropuccinia psidii.
This event, held at an intimate venue at the University of Auckland, will feature guest speakers from Australia and New Zealand. In-person attendance will be limited primarily to presenters, but all talks will be livestreamed to an expansive virtual audience.
“From knowledge to impact” is the theme of this year’s conference. Work is still underway to finalise conference registration details, but meanwhile you can find out more on the website and join the mailing list here.
The organisers are currently seeking sponsorship for the conference. The priority is to facilitate the attendance of Māori, community and student delegates. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please contact Jenny Leonard (leonardj@landcareresearch.co.nz). Download the sponsorship package here.
Jul 26, 2023 | Events Category, News
Myrtle Rust threatens an estimated 350 Australian plants, killing new growth, buds and flowers, meaning severely impacted species can no longer reproduce. Worst affected species will disappear from the wild. Myrtle Rust is having such a devastating impact on some native plants, that scientists, community groups and First Nations groups in Australia and New Zealand are working together to devise an Australasian response. In June 2023 over 100 experts from around the globe met in Sydney to share knowledge in the inaugural Australasian Myrtle Rust Conference, supported by the Australian Network for Plant Conservation.
Download the Summary of Proceedings of the Australasian Myrtle Rust Conference here [PDF link]
Attendees were buoyed by the breadth of work and dedication to preventing Myrtle Rust extinctions. They were simultaneously unanimous in the sentiment that stronger leadership, greater coordination, and long-term funding were the crucial missing elements. Priority next steps include improved sharing of resources and of research and its outcomes, and refining priority species and actions for conservation efforts to maximise the involvement of researchers, communities and land managers.
Several key themes emerged from the 50 presentations given during the conference, giving rise to potential simultaneous directions to tackle Myrtle Rust incursions and extinctions:
International guest speaker Dr Richard Sniezko from the US Department of Agriculture Forest Service, presenting on developing disease resistance tree populations for restoration. Credit: Dan Turner
Jun 30, 2023 | News
More than 90 people, including many from New Zealand, gathered to discuss developments across the rapidly expanding field of Myrtle Rust research and conservation action. Indigenous representation and voice, from both Australia and New Zealand, was the highest of any Australian-based Myrtle Rust conference so far. The conference was followed by a two-day workshop on the screening potential for rust-tolerant genotypes in some of the most severely affected species, as a basis for reinforcing the declining populations. Conference attendee and guest speaker Dr Richard Sniezko (US Department of Agriculture Forest Service), who has a long history in breeding North American trees for disease resistance, has helped take this management option to a firmer level. Recordings from the conference will be available soon!
The next step is to produce a report on the outcomes and achievements of the Conference and workshop. This will help transfer awareness of current research and conservation practice between the countries and Australian states, and will feed into the Commonwealth’s development of a Threat Abatement Plan and parallel work in various states.
Image: Bob Makinson, ANPC Outreach Delegate and Myrtle Rust champion (left), with fellow rust warriors Peri Tobias from University of Sydney and Geoff Pegg from the Queensland Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, at the Australasian Myrtle Rust Conference last week in Sydney. Credit: Chantelle Doyle
