Understanding threats to Brassica crops: A case study
The location of the semester long survey project.
Picture of the Brassica plot that we surveyed for a month.
Study site located at The Farm at Sunnyside.
The location of the semester long survey project.
Learn more about the impacts of black rot disease on Brassica crops, as well as potential management strategies for the disease.
Our Team
The project was managed and created by three Wildlife Ecology in Conservation students at the Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation. Each of us plan on using our education to better relations between the natural world and people, through research, communication, and increasing interest in sustainable lifestyles.
A common disease within Brassica crops worldwide, black rot (Xanthomonas campestris pv. Campestris) is generally observed during the wetter months. Characteristic signs of the disease vary depending on the specific crop, but is largely recognized by the black leisons present on infected plants.
Black Rot
Brassica Threat Case Study
The study was located at The Farm at Sunnyside, an organic farm in Washington Virginia. It focuses on the threats facing Brassica crops at this site, but are also common throughout Brassica species around the world. Taking place during the month of October, we were able to monitor the progression of black rot over the rainy and wet season. Herbivory threats were also noted, but seemed to have less of an impact on the crops than black rot disease. For more information concerning our project, use the above tabs to discover study methods, potential management strategies, and the characteristics of black rot.