Tag: Warwick Crop Centre

Diamondback moths discovered overwintering in Somerset

Scientists have found diamondback moth (DBM) caterpillars surviving in UK Brassica crops this winter and are recommending growers check their own crops for the pest now.

Previously considered a migratory pest, recent research from AHDB indicated that diamondback moths could be surviving UK winters.

AHDB’s Dawn Teverson, and Rosemary Collier from Warwick Crop Centre have been out in the field hunting for the caterpillars and found the pest on the underside of leaves in un-netted swede crops, located in the south west of England.

Cutting-edge research points the way to canker resistant parsnip varieties

Studies carried out by Warwick University‘s Dr Lauren Chappell, now an Elsoms plant pathologist, have identified the three main pathogens responsible for parsnip canker, providing a secure platform for the development of disease-resistant lines. Elsoms, a global leader in parsnip breeding, is investing heavily in research, state-of-the art breeding techniques and seed production to bring UK growers the very best varieties. 

Countering the Courgette Crisis

It seems we are facing a Courgette Crisis. Although it’s really just a bit of a run on green vegetables, it does remind us that actually, courgettes – and now iceberg lettuce – shouldn’t be ‘February vegetables’. This raises some important issues about what we as consumers have learned to expect when it comes to food.

Warwick University PhD student Daniel Wilson wins poster prize

Daniel Wilson, a PhD student in Warwick University‘s School of Life Sciences and the Warwick Crop Centre, won first prize for his poster at the Royal Entomological Society Post-Graduate Forum held at Sheffield University on 2nd–3rd February.

Daniel’s project is funded by the Waitrose Agronomy Group and the University of Warwick.