May Gum Tree Guardians Updates

May is over and what a month it was for Gum Tree Guardians! A big welcome to the 38 new members of the project. It’s wonderful to have you all on board and I’ve loved watching our community grow. Let’s dive into the updates for May!

An additional 26 observations were added over the month of May on a wide range of Myrtaceae species including Melaleuca quinquenervia, Backhousia citriodora, Gossia gonoclada, Gossia acmenoides, and the majority of observations on Rhodamnia rubescens, . The observations spanned as far North as Cairns all the way down to Mollymook.

I wanted to highlight this observation from Gum Tree Guardian @porcoespinho15 who joined the project in May and coincidently discovered a myrtle rust infection in his garden. This observation is a great example of the development of myrtle rust symptoms that appear throughout the pathogens life cycle.

Myrtle rust on leaves of Backhousia citriodora by @porcoespinho15. Image 1 and 2 display symptoms on juvenile leaves. Image 1 shows pustules developing on the juvenile leaves and Image 2 shows the pustules once they have fully developed. Image 3 shows older pustules. These would have infected the leaf when it was young and no new infection begins as the leaf matures.

Remember, if you come across a myrtle rust infected plant, don't touch it! The spores can spread easily, so it's best to keep your hands off. Take a picture of the infected material, and some photos of the entire plant if possible, to help us identify the host plant. Then, upload the photos to iNaturalist, including the location, which will automatically add the image to the Gum Tree Guardians project.

Being a Gum Tree Guardian is about more than just monitoring and reporting on myrtle rust infected plants. It's also about raising awareness of the importance of Myrtaceae plants in our unique ecosystem. If your friends or family aren't already part of the Gum Tree Guardians project on iNaturalist, why not encourage them to join us and start making a difference today? https://inaturalist.ala.org.au/projects/gum-tree-guardians

Together, we can protect our native Myrtaceae plants and preserve our beautiful ecosystem for generations to come.

Thank you again for your contribution to science,

Alyssa

Posted on June 1, 2023 01:37 AM by myrtle_rust_martino