Plant pawthology at the Kenilworth Show
On 3 June 2023 our Xanthomonas Threats project hosted a stall at the Kenilworth Show. Here Shannon Greer and Joana Vincente report on their day.
The Kenilworth Show is an annual agricultural show that has been running nearly uninterrupted for over 100 years. This show took place even when Stoneleigh Park also hosted the Royal Show, a much larger agricultural show (from 1963 to 2009). The Kenilworth Show is now the largest one-day show in the Midlands.
Our stand was part of the University of Warwick Crop Centre display in the Discovery Tent. It included plates with bacteria, infected plants showing symptoms and an activity on how to identify different races of Xanthomonas campestris pv. campestris, the cause of black rot of brassicas. Shannon Greer prepared the Xanthomonas Threats display and was joined by Joana Vicente and Ana Dominguez-Ferreras for the day.
We talked to visitors about the challenges of controlling this disease and what we are doing to find sources of resistance that might form part of a management solution one day. This fitted in well next to displays of pests of brassicas, diversity of Brassica species (including cabbages, cauliflower, broccoli, turnips, swede, mustards) and common weeds. The Crop Centre stand also included a ‘Don’t Risk It’ suitcase – the APHA campaign reminding people not to bring plants and seeds from abroad as they risk introducing pests and diseases.
The stand was always busy, and many interesting conversations were had. We spoke to many amateur gardeners who shared their problems growing brassicas and other plants. Children were keen to try growing cress at home and took a free sample of seeds and instructions. We were also visited by some researchers and retired colleagues, a plant inspector and the Mayor and Deputy Mayor of Kenilworth.
But the most important visitor had to be Bilbo, Shannon’s very well-behaved working cocker spaniel puppy! As this show was dog friendly, we had fun spotting all sorts of dog breeds.
During our breaks, we took turns to walk around the showground. There were over 100 trade stalls to explore selling all sorts of food, crafts, homeware and clothes. The event also included animal shows with sheep, cows, dogs, ponies and horses, and some displays of tractors and farm machinery.