Mapping microbes across Australia: Growers needed for national sampling effort
The National Integrated Disease Management program, led by Professor Brajesh Singh of Western Sydney University, is currently inviting Australian potato growers across the country to participate in their national sampling effort. This Hort Innovation-funded project is working to develop effective diagnostic tools, improve understanding of plant-microbial interactions and deliver integrated disease management (IDM) solutions tailored to conditions on Australian potato farms.
Key project objectives include:
Determining the diversity and function of microbes and soil fauna that influence disease and productivity.
Understanding nutrient cycling and disease management.
Improve understanding of crop and microbial interactions.
Integrating soil health into practice.
About the sampling activities
To better understand potato cropping systems, researchers from the project will travel across Australia to collect microbiome samples from participating farms including:
• Plant samples such as leaves, tubers, and roots
• Rhizosphere soil (soil closely associated with plant roots)
• Bulk soil samples from cropping areas
Analysing samples from various potato regions will help researchers identify soil-borne disease pressures, understand how microbes influence crop health, and reveal key factors affecting productivity and soil health.
Benefits for participating growers
Growers who participate in the project are offered confidential insights into the soil health of their farm, including information on microbial communities and factors influencing disease risk. Just as importantly, grower participation will help researchers build a national dataset that will support the development of improved diagnostics and integrated disease management strategies for the future.
Confidentiality
All information provided by growers will be handled in strict confidentiality. Farms will not be identified in any report or documents produced by the project. This confidentiality is a requirement of university ethics protocols, and all grower data will be securely managed and destroyed after project analyses are completed.
How to participate
Growers interested in participating in the sampling program are encouraged to contact project lead Professor Brajesh Singh: b.singh@westernsydney.edu.au
Read more about the broader project here
