Evaluation of Key Chemicals for Pest Management in the Olive Industry

The project Evaluation of key chemicals for pest management in the olive industry arose in response to a major review of pests and diseases of olives in Australia and the availability of acceptable pesticides for their sustainable management, that identified olive lace bug and the fruit rot disease anthracnose as the two serious problems without effective approved chemicals. Olive lace bug is an Australian native species which severely damages olive tree foliage, causing leaf loss and twig and branch dieback. Anthracnose is a fruit rot caused by cosmopolitan fungi which damage fruit, reducing yield and olive oil quality. The project aimed to identify suitable chemicals against these two key pests, and conduct trials to generate efficacy data, to assist in their registration with the Australian pesticides regulatory authority, the APVMA, for legal use in olives. HAL PROJECT OL13002