Aug 1, 2025 | News
Partner gardens collaborating to safeguard vulnerable species
Over the past several years, the distribution of various lineages of Native Guava (Rhodomyrtus psidioides) and Scrub Turpentine (Rhodamnia rubescens) to partner gardens has played a vital role in the conservation of species impacted by Myrtle Rust. Between 2021 and 2024, dedicated teams at Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens, Blue Mountains Botanic Garden – Mt Tomah, The Australian Botanic Garden – Mt Annan, Australian National Botanic Gardens – Canberra, Booderee Botanic Garden and Dandenong Botanic Garden have nurtured and closely monitored these meta-collections.
The good news is, despite facing a range of challenges—including outbreaks of Myrtle Rust, animal browsing and damaging storms—all distributed plants remain alive! This resilience is a testament to the commitment and care provided by staff across all participating gardens. ☀️ Special thanks to all involved.
Supports put in place to protect trees from wild weather
Fencing to protect the trees from browsing
With plans underway to distribute additional lineages from central collections in New South Wales and Queensland, we have been actively reviewing original processes and collecting lessons learned from each garden’s experience. Our approach aims to continually improve outcomes for these at-risk species.
Two weeks ago at Mount Tomah, Ian Allan shared valuable insights on site selection and plant management. He observed that plants positioned with better access to sunlight have shown notably stronger growth. Looking ahead, Ian highlighted the potential for experimenting with hedge-format plantings—an approach that could offer more efficient use of space and improved management options.
If your garden or arboretum is interested in hosting safe custody collections for species affected by Myrtle Rust, please reach out to Pip Walsh at myrtlerust@anpc.asn.au to learn more.
Feature image: Ian Allan with one of the larger Native Guava trees at Mt Tomah.
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.
Jan 10, 2025 | News
Pip Walsh joined ANPC late last year as the Myrtle Rust Recovery Action Coordinator. Pip has over 30 years’ experience in the not-for-profit sector working in senior roles at WWF, Greening Australia and Bush Heritage. Since 2016 Pip has specialised in working with project teams to develop, implement and improve conservation and community projects using the Open Standards for Conservation.
Pip will head our new project funded by the Australian Government under the Saving Native Species program, which will coordinate recovery actions over 18 months for four Critically Endangered plants at risk of near-term extinction or serious decline due to the exotic fungal disease Myrtle Rust: Native Guava (Rhodomyrtus psidioides); Angle-stemmed Myrtle (Gossia gonoclada); Scrub Turpentine (Rhodamnia rubescens) and Smooth Scrub Turpentine (Rhodamnia maideniana). Click here to learn more about the project.
In her spare time Pip is a keen bushwalker, still potters around a soccer field and gets her hands dirty with Narrowneck Bushcare group.
This project is supported by funding from the Australian Government.
