The infection process of Macrophomina phaseolina has not been studied on strawberry. Lindsey Pedroncelli, Peter M. Henry, and Alexander I. Putman explored if and where M. phaseolina can colonize strawberry plant tissues within 1 month of inoculation: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-02-25-0016-R

Sara Pereira Menezes Reis et al. developed species-specific primers for biomonitoring frosty pod rot of #cacao. Learn more: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-03-24-0032-R

“In Vitro Assays Suggest Rapid ‘Ōhi‘a Death Fungi Can Colonize Metrosideros polymorpha Fine Roots,” by Dylan Hyun et al. Read the article in Volume 5, Number 3 of PhytoFrontiers: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-01-25-0008-SC

Using tomato as a model, Salomé Lengrand et al. designed a novel culture system to study the seed-borne endophytic bacterial community from seed to seedling, investigating its colonization and impact on plant health. Learn more: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-01-25-0004-R

Katherine A. Ashley et al. investigated the impacts of various management practices on soil microbial communities, including rotation length, non-grain rotation crops, green manures, compost amendments, and a soil fumigant using 2 potato varieties: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-02-25-0015-R

Plum pox virus (PPV), a major threat to stone fruits, was eradicated from the U.S. after its 1999 discovery in Pennsylvania. Elizabeth E. Rogers, Andrew L. Stone, and Diana J. Sherman present genome sequences of 6 PPV finds from the eradication effort: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-09-24-0097-SC

Sensor-based techniques show potential as alternatives to visual rating techniques of plant diseases. Ronald Tapia et al. evaluated methods for canopy reflectance as a phenotyping approach that can be applied across many research contexts: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-06-24-0063-SC

David L. Roberts et al. introduce decision intelligence to enhance nematode management in sweetpotato cultivation. 🪱🍠 Learn more: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-09-24-0099-P

Meloidogyne chitwoodi is one of the most important soilborne pests of potato. Michelle Soule et al. developed a qPCR assay for the identification and quantification of M. chitwoodi. Learn more: https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-09-24-0107-FI

New EDNA e-probes developed by D. M. Nascimento et al. detect 20 citrus pathogens from raw HTS data. Validated as accurate and scalable tools, they support global citrus germplasm protection and biosecurity. https://doi.org/10.1094/PHYTOFR-12-24-0140-FI

Lena Flörl and Nicholas A. Bokulich evaluated the efficacy of universal mitochondrial and chloroplast PNA blockers across a range of concentrations and estimated their impact on alpha and beta diversity. Learn more: doi.org/10.1094/PHYT...

Timothy O. Jobe et al. screened #Fusarium oxysporum isolates for 14 “secreted in xylem” (SIX) effector genes—finding SIX9 shows potential for rapid detection and race-specific quantification in infected plants. Learn more: doi.org/10.1094/PHYT...

Editor’s Pick! Hope Raymond et al. compared the microbial communities of drippy blight in Colorado to those of drippy nut in California and to determine whether other pathogenic fungal or bacterial taxa are associated with the diseases. 🌳 Learn more: doi.org/10.1094/PHYT...

Lindsey Burbank et al. evaluated several risk factors for Xyella fastidiosa disease in the California olive industry, including infection of the common cultivars and acquisition by insect vectors. 🫒 Learn more: doi.org/10.1094/PHYT...