New app paints clear picture of pesticide resistance across Australia

A new data visualisation tool can display the distribution and severity of pesticide resistance across Australia, enabling growers and agronomists to make better, data-driven crop management decisions relevant to their region.

The Pesticide Resistance Integrated Mapping (PRIM) tool was developed through the Analytics for the Australian Grains Industry (AAGI) program, a major investment by GRDC.

The Pesticide Resistance Integrated Mapping (PRIM) tool on display with CCDM researchers Dr Leon Hodgson, Associate Professor Fran Lopez-Ruiz and director Professor Mark Gibberd.

Photo: CCDM

Produced by the Centre for Crop and Disease Management (CCDM) in collaboration with geospatial technology company NGIS, the first release of the PRIM tool visualises the spatial distribution of fungicide resistance data, with potential to expand to other data including herbicide and insecticide resistance monitoring and biosecurity issues.

CCDM Director Professor Mark Gibberd said the simple web-based app was the first of many exciting research outputs to come from AAGI that will give growers the help they need to make the most profitable decision around crop and chemical use.

″We are very excited to release the PRIM tool as we feel it could really make a positive difference to current farming systems,″ Professor Gibberd said.

″PRIM is one of the first key outputs to come from AAGI and is an example of how this major national research initiative can come up with data analytics solutions to challenges faced by growers.

″In its first release, PRIM has enabled an enormous database of CCDM’s fungicide resistance testing results to be visualised in a map, showing industry that fungicide resistance is indeed everywhere, with various levels of severity across the country.″

NGIS General Manager WA Matt Stewart said developing PRIM into a simple, web-based app has been a fantastic accomplishment, using major fungicide resistance datasets with associated GPS data to build a map that displayed resistance distribution of de-identified results.

″And it’s promising to think this data visualisation tool is only in its early stages, with potential to visualise all sorts of agricultural data. As more data is entered into the system, the more accurate the tool gets, and the less guesswork there is for growers,″ Mr Stewart said.

AAGI Director Nathan O’Callaghan said he was proud to release PRIM to the grains industry, as the tool stands for everything that AAGI represents.

″AAGI is about creating opportunities for Australian growers to be world leaders in analytics-driven decision-making, and the new PRIM tool will do just that,″ Dr O’Callaghan said.

CCDM’s fungicide resistance leader Associate Professor Fran Lopez-Ruiz and researcher Dr Leon Hodgson have worked closely with NGIS to develop the fungicide resistance component within PRIM.

″For years, we have been testing diseased leaves for fungicide resistance and letting growers know if they have a problem or not,″ Associate Professor Lopez-Ruiz said.

″Now, with PRIM, we can add all this data in one place available to all growers and continue to add new data as it comes in, improving the accuracy of fungicide resistance in every Australian grain growing region.

″Together with key management advice from the Australian Fungicide Resistance Extension Network (AFREN), we’ve been able to remove much of the grey area from disease management decisions.″

Fungicide resistance in PRIM currently involves four key pathosystems including wheat septoria tritici blotch, wheat powdery mildew, and barley net-form and spot-form net blotch, with plans to expand into other pathosystems in the near future.

AAGI was launched in 2023 as a major investment by GRDC led by strategic partners Curtin University, the University of Queensland and the University of Adelaide.

PRIM will be presented to attendees at the 2024 Crop Protection Forum, in Highfields, Queensland, 27th November. 

Access PRIM view the CCDM website.