Michigan State University says a team leading a national research project on fire blight, “Comprehensive Fire Blight Management for the United States,” will host a series of webinars to highlight new research and best management practices.
The one-hour webinars will begin at 5 p.m. Eastern. Those interested can register online.
The series includes:
- April 4 — “Current resistance status of antibiotics for fire blight management” by Frank Zhao, Washington State University. Zhao will share new research on the prevalence of kasugamycin, oxytetracycline and streptomycin resistance.
- April 18 — “Fire Blight Moves Fast in the Plant. Prune Fast to Stay Ahead” by Katherine Olive, Michigan State University. Olive will share new research that shows how fire blight can move rapidly in a day in shoots.
- Nov. 6 — “Plant Defense Products Actigard and Kudos/Apogee” by George Sundin, Michigan State University, and Tom Kon, North Carolina State University. In a recent project, plant-defense elicitors were tested to prevent shoot blight in the month past petal fall. Sundin and Kon will share results from co-authors Kerik Cox at Cornell University; Tianna DuPont at Washington State University; and Sara Villani at North Carolina State University.


