Pests - Horticulture

There was no fruit fly to be found in Broken Hill 20 years ago, but now gardeners are facing an uphill battle trying to rid themselves of the pest.

The cost of treating varroa mite in the beekeeping industry is flowing onto other food growers reliant on pollination.

The deadly bee parasite has been detected in South Australia again — this time in the state's south-east.

Growers in this major food bowl are nervous for their future, as the state focuses its shot-hole borer efforts on outer-Perth. 

The colourful flowers of gazanias might attract you to buy them at a nursery but it is worth considering whether you are getting an invasive weed causing havoc to our landscapes.

PIRSA says there is a chance the deadly parasite remains in the state where it was detected for the first time earlier this month.

Biosecurity Tasmania is working to trace the origins of the two potatoes, as potato mop-top virus continues to spread through Tasmania.

An exotic pest that kills pine trees and can be spread by humans has felled nearly 1,400 trees in Adelaide.

Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia have placed restrictions on the importation of unprocessed Tasmanian potatoes, following the island state's outbreak of mop-top virus.

Tracing operations are underway to determine the potential distribution of potato mop-top virus after a second case in a month has been detected in the state.

Northern Territory mangoes can freely flow into Western Australia after the regions agreed on a new fruit fly management protocol, weeks out from the NT mango harvest.

Potato mop-top virus, which does not harm humans, has been found in multiple potatoes on a Tasmanian farm — a first for Australia.

With the imminent release of a review into the risks of rodent bait in Australia, an award-winning initiative uses barn owls as a natural alternative to controlling rats and mice on farms.

A leading biosecurity officer says it will be several months before Australia can be declared free of an invasive snail that has the potential to infest hundreds of plant species.

Two invasive fire ant nests are found and destroyed at Palmview, on the Sunshine Coast, where locals are concerned for the safety of children living and playing in the area.

Graziers are watching pastures disappear, despite some spending tens of thousands to protect their paddocks from voracious swarms threatening to grow to plague proportions.

The insect said to threaten the food security of 600 million people globally may have met its match in the form of several native Australian fungi and bacteria.

Residents in Queensland's fire ant suppression zone are pleading for help, saying nest numbers and attacks on humans and animals have exploded since ex-Tropical Cyclone Alfred swamped the state's south east.

The fight against shot-hole-borer is being hampered by the use of NDAs hiding the location of infected trees, two Perth mayors say.

Residents in a swathe of suburbs in Perth's south are urged to remove all fruit and fruiting vegetables from their gardens following the detection of the Queensland fruit fly, which poses a significant threat to the state's horticultural industries.