emr: research, development & innovation

emr: research, development & innovation annual report 2011

Governing Board Chairman: Dr Oliver Doubleday Mr Frank Attwood Professor Ian Crute CBE Mrs Sarah Ward OBE Science & Industry Advisory Board Chairman: Professor Ian Crute CBE Professor Nick Battey Professor William Davies CBE Dr Helen Ferrier Mr David Gardner Retired as Chairman of East Malling Research December 2011 Assumed Chairmanship December 2011 Auditors: Day, Smith & Hunter, Globe House, Eclipse Park, Sittingbourne Road, Maidstone, Kent, ME14 3EN Solicitors: Brachers LLP, Somerfield House, 59 London Road, Maidstone, Kent, ME16 8JH Banking: Barclays Bank, 40/46 High Street Maidstone, Kent, ME14 1SS Patent Agents: Marks & Clerk LLP, 90 Long Acre, London, WC2E 9RA East Malling Research New Road, East Malling, Kent, ME19 6BJ, UK A private company limited by guarantee. Registered in England. Registration No. 5019373. Charity Registration No. 1102243. Registered office as above Telephone: +44(0)1732 843833 Fax: +44(0)1732 849067 Electronic mail: enquiries@emr.ac.uk Website: www.emr.ac.uk Editors: Angela Chapple and Jane Gregory Graphics and Design: Photography: Penny Greeves Penny Greeves East Malling Research 2012

annual report 2011: contents Page Introduction 1 Professor Peter Gregory Genetics and Crop Improvement 6 Dr David Simpson Pest and Pathogen Ecology for Sustainable Crop Management 12 Professor Jerry Cross Resource Efficiency for Crop Production 20 Dr Christopher Atkinson Communications getting the word out 27 Dr Ursula Twomey Staff Publications 34 Accounts 38 Staff List 39 EMR Research Projects 41

new strawberry varieties are raised in vitro to ensure clean plant material

introduction: Professor Peter J. Gregory 1 It is a great pleasure to be writing this introduction to the first annual report for East Malling Research (EMR). Reports from the original East Malling Research Station ceased in 1986 when the Station was combined with others to form Horticulture Research International (HRI), but following the demise of that organisation in 2004 there have been no further reports of activity at East Malling. An annual report can serve several purposes, including letting the world know the good things that are happening as well as demonstrating the evolution of thought and creativity that sustains an organisation such as EMR. I hope that the re-instigation of this reporting practice will enable future generations to look back on what has been achieved. I took up my appointment on 1 May 2011, shortly after the publication of the UK Government s Foresight Report on The Future of Food and Farming. While the focus of the report is global, it offers significant indicators for the direction of research in the UK, with emphases on the development of sustainable intensification of production, meeting the challenges of a low emissions world, reducing waste throughout the food system, and maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services while simultaneously producing more food. These are all areas in which EMR has a well-developed skills base, and with the government displaying a greater interest in producing goods than in recent years, this is an interesting time at which to be engaged in horticultural research. After years in which the money available to support research at EMR has decreased substantially, it is good to feel that the winds of change (just a breeze at present) may facilitate our transition from surviving to thriving. We have been working hard since the summer to hone our thinking to develop a research strategy and plan that will take EMR forward. We are determined to be

2 introduction recognised as the pre-eminent research institute in the UK for strategic and applied research, development and innovation for horticultural crops, especially perennial and clonally propagated crops. We shall do this by conducting high-quality strategic and applied research in horticultural and environmental sciences, and delivering knowledge, products and services that benefit our public and private customers. In turn, this research will deliver innovations to increase production in ways that are profitable for producers but also enhance the provision of other ecosystem services, increase the efficiency of resource use, result in less waste across the food system, minimise greenhouse gas emissions, and cope with a more variable and changing climate. To deliver this ambitious research agenda, we have organised our science into three programmes: genetics and crop improvement, pest and pathogen ecology for sustainable crop management, and resource efficiency for crop production. The activities of each of these programmes are briefly described in this report. In addition, we are acutely aware that much exciting research occurs at the boundaries of traditional academic disciplines, so we have identified five cross-cutting research themes that span these programme boundaries on which we intend to place particular emphasis. There is already ongoing activity in some of these themes, but others are currently only aspirations and will become active as the plan proceeds. These high-level research themes will be: i) diploid strawberry as a model for perennial crops; ii) the genetic basis of resistance and pathogenicity; iii) enhancement of soils and substrates for improved function; iv) pre- and post-harvest practices to enhance shelf-life and quality; and v) development of an improved scientific basis for rootstock improvement.

3 Our research activity has continued apace and the knowledge generated is finding its way into a wide variety of practices. In Genetics and Crop Improvement, the publication of the genome of the wild strawberry led to the development of the most comprehensive linkage map so far for the cultivated strawberry, with over 500 sequence characterised markers spanning the 56 chromosomes. The map is for progeny segregating for resistance to the fungal pathogen Verticillium dahliae, and we have identified three resistance QTL for which we will develop markers for marker assisted breeding. The main research outcome from our Pests and Pathogen Ecology for Sustainable Crop Management programme was the development and implementation of an integrated pest and disease management strategy for raspberry, leading to production of raspberry fruit with minimal pesticide residues. Meanwhile, reducing the excessive use of water in the horticultural industry has been a major area of research in Resource Efficiency for Crop Production over many years. A scientifically-based irrigation scheduling regime that optimises water and fertiliser inputs was tested in grower trials during 2011, and delivered water savings of up to 36%, fertiliser savings of up to 19%, and yield of Class 1 fruit up to 15% more when compared to commercial practice. This new irrigation scheduling regime will be integrated into commercial production in 2012. One of the outstanding features of EMR is its close association with the horticultural industry, so that results from research swiftly find their way into practice. Our recently released varieties of strawberry ( Finesse and Elegance ) have taken an increasing share of plant sales in the UK with strong interest also from the continent, and we were delighted that the new variety Buddy took two prizes at the National Fruit Show in November including Best in Show. In addition our new

4 introduction amber raspberry EM6881/102 has been marketed exclusively by Waitrose and has proved very popular with growers and customers alike. As with many other organisations, quality is often judged externally by the institutions that are the chief collaborators and partners, and much of our research activity is undertaken jointly with others. During 2011, EMR became an Associated Institute of the University of Reading an association that should benefit both institutions and which has brought the practical benefit to EMR of access to library facilities. We are also developing a joint PhD studentship programme that will not only lead to greater collaborative research opportunities but also increase the number of lively minds working at EMR. Our relationship with the Natural Resources Institute at the University of Greenwich also continues to develop with an increasing amount of research on the storage of fruit and vegetables in our joint Fresh Produce Centre, in addition to the long-standing collaboration on pheromones of insect pests of fruit trees. Other relationships are also being explored including those with ADAS, our near-neighbour the University of Kent, and Stockbridge Technology Centre in Yorkshire. During the year we were sorry to lose Dr Dan Sargent to the Institute Agario San Michele all Adige (IASMA) in Italy, although his services are still retained by us on a part time basis. However, we gained several new scientific researchers including Dr Richard Harrison who joined us as a geneticist and bioinformaticist, and Dr Robert Saville who joined as a pathologist in a Fellowship supported jointly by the East Malling Trust, the Horticultural Trades Association and the Horticulture Development Council. These new appointments are already having positive benefits for our capacity to take on new work.

5 We were pleased also to welcome many visitors to EMR during the year, including an international delegation of visiting growers from the International Fruit Tree Association in July, Professor Douglas Kell (Chief Executive of the Biological and Biotechnological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) in November, and Professor Tom Blundell, Dr Celia Caulcott and Mr Steve Visscher (BBSRC) in December. The East Malling Trust continues its generous support of horticultural research in the UK through the financial backing that it provides to EMR and the shortfalls in funding that it makes good in the contracts that we win. I am particularly grateful to the EMR Board for their support since my appointment, and especially to Dr Oliver Doubleday who stepped down as Chairman in November and to Frank Atwood who took up that baton. The new Science and Industry Committee of the EMR Board (chaired by Dr Ian Crute) has been very helpful during the development of our research strategy, and Will Sibley and Adrian Padfield of the Trust have been unfailingly encouraging. I hope that you will enjoy reading about our work.

6 genetics and crop improvement: Dr David Simpson The programme focuses on the genetic improvement of Rosaceous fruit crops, with commercially-funded breeding programmes producing finished cultivars for strawberry, raspberry and cherry, and rootstocks for apple and pear. Underpinning the breeding, the emphasis of research projects is on understanding the genetics of key traits at the molecular and whole plant level. In 2011 the genetic research was concentrated on improving resistance to diseases, increasing productivity and improving water use efficiency. A common theme across all the crops is the development of genetic linkage maps that are used to locate markers linked to important major genes and quantitative trait loci (QTL). For strawberry there are two breeding programmes running in parallel. One is funded by the Horticultural Development Council (HDC) and a consortium of commercial partners, which form the Strawberry Breeding Club (SBC), while the second is developing exclusive cultivars for CPM Ltd, a soft fruit marketing company. The SBC programme released two new cultivars in 2011, which are available to all growers from Hargreaves Plants Ltd. Buddy is an everbearer with large fruit size that crops from July to October. It combines excellent eating quality with moderate resistance to crown rot and powdery mildew, and at the National Fruit Show in October it won awards for best everbearer and best strawberry in the show. Serenity is a late-fruiting June bearer and is the first EMR cultivar to be produced by exploiting somaclonal variation. Approximately 500 plants were regenerated from leaf discs of the cultivar Florence and screened for variants. Serenity was selected due to the paler skin colour and improved appearance of its berries. In other respects Serenity has the same desirable characteristics as Florence, i.e. late season, large berries with good flavour and multiple disease resistance.

7 New strawberry variety - Buddy New apricot coloured raspberry variety - EM6881/102 Three research projects underpinned the strawberry breeding programmes. The genetics of resistance to Verticillium wilt is described below. Other projects have developed genetic linkage maps for progenies, segregating for traits related to water use efficiency (WUE) and for resistance to strawberry powdery mildew. The former is the more advanced and QTL associated with WUE traits have been identified. Mildew symptoms on strawberry leaves > Malus linkage map being used to Apple and pear rootstock breeding is funded by the HDC and International New identify genes of agronomic Varieties Network (INN), an international consortium of nurseries. Five rootstocks importance, such as WUE with commercial potential have been included in an HDC trial, with Royal Gala and Braeburn as scions, and a further four in an organic trial, worked with Red Falstaff. A related research project has developed a highly saturated molecular linkage map for a rootstock progeny from the cross M.27 x M.116, which segregates for dwarfing/vigour along with WUE and resistance traits. An initial outline map comprising 151 SSR markers was expanded to 323 SSRs and a further 1677 SNP markers were added in 2011 by using an Infinium II genotyping array based on the sequence of the apple cultivar Golden Delicious. This work was done in collaboration with IASMA, Italy, and it is the first time this technology has been used for linkage mapping in apple, resulting in the most comprehensive linkage map reported to date for the genus Malus. > A new apricot-coloured primocane raspberry selection has been exclusively marketed by Waitrose for the first time in 2011, attracting interest from consumers and praise from growers. This new raspberry is spine-free and genetically resistant to the most common biotypes of the large raspberry aphid. It produces high-yields of very attractive, sweet fruits.

8 genetics and crop improvement < Strawberry plant with resistance to Verticillium dahliae (left) and plant with no resistance (right) Assessing seedlings (right) Meristems for culture (far right) > The genetics of resistance to Verticillium dahliae in the cultivated strawberry Wilt, caused by the soil borne fungus Verticillium dahliae, is one of the most economically important diseases of strawberry and can cause losses in yield of up to 100% in susceptible varieties in untreated, infected soil. The disease can only be controlled by soil fumigation but the most effective fumigant, methyl bromide, is an ozone depleter and its use in the UK was banned in 2005. Other fumigants, such as chloropicrin and bazamid, currently offer an alternative, but they are less effective and the continued permissible use of chloropicrin is currently uncertain, suggesting that the fumigation approach is unlikely to be sustainable in the long term. Another alternative is to grow strawberries in containers using a peat or coir based substrate, but this is much more expensive than growing in soil and is also likely to become unsustainable. The strawberry industry requires cultivars with strong resistance to wilt, but those currently available to growers do not have the fruit quality characteristics demanded by retailers and consumers. Thus, new high quality resistant cultivars must be bred, but screening for resistance is time consuming, involving repeated field experiments. Furthermore, this approach means that even the resistant individuals are still contaminated with the pathogen and it is necessary to use meristem culture to produce disease free plants, which is complicated and expensive. To address this problem, EMR undertook an investigation into the molecular genetics of resistance to V. dahliae, with the intention of developing markers for resistance that could be used to expedite the breeding process. The project was funded by the BBSRC Crop Science Initiative. Earlier work had shown that the resistance to wilt in the cultivated strawberry is a polygenic trait, so the approach

9 taken was to produce a segregating progeny so that resistance QTLs could be located on a linkage map. The resistant cultivar Redgauntlet was crossed with the susceptible Hapil and 188 seedlings were evaluated for phenotypic resistance in three separate field experiments in different years. The cultivated strawberry is a highly heterozygous octoploid species and consequently genetically very complex. However, the related wild woodland strawberry, Fragaria vesca, is a diploid progenitor of the allo-octoploid cultivated strawberry and consequently a useful model species for high-resolution genomics analysis in strawberry and other rosaceous perennials. As part of an international consortium, including scientists from Europe, USA, New Zealand, Chile, South Africa and Israel, we sequenced the entire genome of F. vesca. In genetic mapping research at EMR we had shown that the diploid and octoploid Fragaria genomes were essentially collinear at the macrosyntenic level, giving confidence that the F. vesca genome sequence would be valuable in identifying genetic loci involved in resistance to Verticillium wilt. The resultant F. vesca sequence generated spanned a total of 219 Mb of nucleotide sequence data, which were sequenced to an average depth of coverage of 39 and assembled into approximately 3,200 sequence scaffolds. 34,809 predicted genes were located, to these scaffolds, identified through deep transcriptome sequencing, and 25,050 were assigned preliminary annotation. Of the 272 sequencing scaffolds over 50 kbp in length, 222 were anchored to precise positions on the diploid Fragaria genetic reference map, which was developed in an earlier EMR project and contained 411 sequence characterised genetic markers. The transferability of sequence characterised markers from the diploid to the

10 genetics and crop improvement > Strawberry genotyping octoploid Fragaria species was extremely high and thus the diploid genome sequence allowed EMR to generate significant numbers of transferrable microsatellite (SSR) markers spanning the Fragaria genome. From over 300 primer pairs designed, 232 proved to be heterozygous in the parental genotypes of the mapping progeny, Redgauntlet and Hapil. This enabled us to create a F. x ananassa genetic linkage map spanning the 56 chromosomes of the cultivated strawberry genome, containing in excess of 500 sequence-characterised markers. This map is the most comprehensive linkage map available for the cultivated strawberry to date and formed the basis of the QTL investigations into resistance to V. dahliae. Phenotypic data collected from the three replicated field trials were analysed in conjunction with the linkage mapping data collected for the progeny, and significant QTL for wilt resistance were identified in all three years. The linkage map developed comprised almost exclusively sequence characterised markers that had been located to specific positions on the genome sequence for F. vesca. This enabled the underlying sequence data spanning the QTL intervals to be identified. From the sequence scaffolds underlying the QTLs, a set of candidate genes for resistance were determined and, from these, markers for PCR-based polymorphism analyses are being developed. One particular marker has been developed for a gene underlying one of the most significant QTL and has been investigated further in a broad set of germplasm used in the breeding programme. This germplasm had previously been determined to range from highly resistant through to highly susceptible and one allele of the marker was present in the majority of the resistant lines screened and was absent from all susceptible and highly susceptible lines. In the most resistant germplasm screened, two particular alleles were always present at the locus. Whilst the QTL does not account for all of the resistance to Verticillium observed, it appears to be a major controlling locus. Markers will now be validated

11 < Fragaria vesca - wild strawberry for the other significant QTL identified, with the intention of developing a suite of markers to select reliably for resistant germplasm, thus facilitating marker-assisted breeding for resistance to Verticillium wilt. Contact: Dr David Simpson (email: david.simpson@emr.ac.uk) Funding from BBSRC, Defra, HDC and the East Malling Trust is gratefully acknowledged Strawberry tasting >

12 pest and pathogen ecology for sustainable crop management: Professor Jerry Cross Work in this science programme in 2011 focused on the vital needs of the UK Horticulture industry to develop solutions to pressing crop protection problems in perennial crops, especially tree and soft fruits. The crops are subject to attack by large and diverse complexes of pests and pathogens which require efficient control to meet the high quality standards of the market and to maintain the competitiveness of the UK industry. The industry has long been reliant on pesticides, but the range of products is continually changing and decreasing due to EU pesticide legislation and the development of resistance. Pest and pathogen problems are also changing in response to changing agronomic practices, especially new crops, varieties and production and storage methods. Most UK soft fruits, except currants, are now grown in polytunnels. Whilst these reduce the risk of some pests and pathogens (e.g. slugs, Botrytis) they are very favourable to others (e.g. mildew and phytophagous mites) but the warmer, more stable climate provides important opportunities to develop new biocontrol methods, which are often unsuccessful in open field crops. Climate change is also clearly having significant effects, especially earlier, longer seasons which allow longer periods for pest and pathogen attacks. Methods for managing alien invasive pests also need to be prepared. It is expected that the spotted winged Drosophila which attacks ripening fruits before harvest, the European corn borer (a potential pest of raspberry) and the blueberry scorch virus (transmitted by aphids or vegetative propagation) will arrive and become established in the UK in the near future. PPESCM research is diverse and in part is focused on developing sustainable solutions and new technologies for managing important individual pests and pathogens. In close collaboration with the Chemical Ecology Group of the Natural Resources Institute, there were major achievements in identifying and exploiting

13 Raspberries growing in tunnels semiochemicals of non-lepidopteran fruit pests. The female sex pheromones of all but one of the important gall midge pests of fruit crops have now been identified, and highly specific and sensitive pest monitoring traps developed and made available to growers. A five-year programme of work demonstrating proof of concept of use of the raspberry cane midge pheromone for pest control was completed. This was the first development and demonstration of the use of a midge pheromone for control of its target pest. A further five-year programme to develop sex pheromone attractants for capsid bug pests has also been completed, culminating in the discovery that many species of these bugs use the same three chemical components in different ratios. The development of special dispensers to release the correct blend at the right rate was found to be crucial. Highly effective lures and traps have been developed for the two most important UK pest species, the European tarnished plant bug and the common green capsid. These will be available for use by growers in 2012. > Raspberry cane midge larvae For pathogen management, we demonstrated through theoretical modelling the lack of synergy of combining two biocontrol agents to manage plant diseases. This theoretical conclusion is further supported by published and unpublished experimental work worldwide. The results of a long sustained programme of research into rot development and management for pome fruits were synthesised into clear recommendations on rot risk management for UK pome fruit growers, which was disseminated as an HDC training DVD. New methods for individual pests and pathogens are combined with existing methods into Integrated Pest and Disease Management (IPDM) programmes. A major focus of the ongoing work in the science programme is developing such

14 pest and pathogen ecology for sustainable crop management > Botrytis on raspberry fruit and Botrytis sclerotia on the cane (right) programmes and testing and refining them in the field, with a special focus on reducing the occurrence of pesticide residues. In 2011, a five-year programme of work was funded under the Horticulture LINK scheme, to develop an IPDM programme for raspberry. This work illustrates the whole principal and practical approach to developing sustainable methods for pests and pathogens and using them in IPDM programmes. The core activity of the science programme and the results are summarised below. Development of Integrated Pest and Disease Management for high quality protected raspberry production Here the outcome of Horticulture LINK project HL0175 (completed 31 March 2011) is briefly summarised. The project was led by EMR and involved the Natural Resources Institute, James Hutton Institute and ADAS as science partners. The Co-Op Group (CWS) Ltd, Marks & Spencer plc, Waitrose, Bayer Crop Sciences, Berry Gardens Ltd, Agrisense BSC Ltd, Assured Food Standards 2003 Ltd, Berry World Ltd, The Summerfruit Company and LEAF were industry partners. Funding was also provided by The East Malling Trust, the Horticultural Development Company and The Worshipful Company of Fruiterers, with Defra as the government sponsor. Grey mould (Botrytis): Grey mould (Botrytis) has traditionally been controlled by programmes of fungicide sprays during flowering and fruit development, a practice that leads to extensive pesticide use and the occurrence of residues. We developed sustainable management strategies to reduce overwintering inoculum and subsequent disease spread through an increased understanding of the dynamics of

15 Raspberry beetle > < Raspberry beetle larvae leaf, cane and fruit infection and how tunnel and crop canopy management affects the disease. On protected raspberry crops, we showed that sprays of fungicides during flowering and fruit development have little effect on Botrytis because fruits are mostly infected symptomlessly anyway. The routine fungicide sprays applied by growers were shown to be of little benefit. It was demonstrated that as good or better control of fruit Botrytis can be achieved by good crop hygiene and cane management to ensure the canopy does not become dense, so allowing good air circulation in the crop; in addition, there should be rapid fruit cooling to 1 2 C immediately at harvest, followed by high quality cool chain marketing. Raspberry beetle: Raspberry beetle is the most important pest of raspberry and was traditionally controlled by spraying with a broad spectrum insecticide. Prior to this project, the raspberry host volatile attractant of the raspberry beetle had been identified by the James Hutton Institute (previously SCRI the Scottish Crop Research Institute), but the lure and trap had not been optimised for grower use and the method of deployment and strategy of use of the trap for management of the pest had not been developed. A new trap-directed localised treatment strategy for management of raspberry beetle was devised and shown to be effective. The strategy involves deployment of 50 raspberry beetle traps per ha in a regular grid throughout the crop, at least 3 4 weeks before flowering (plus additional traps near any remaining wild sources of raspberry beetle). Localised applications of a spray of the neonicotinoid insecticide thiacloprid (Calypso) were made if >5 beetles had been caught in any trap/week by the start of flowering to those tunnels where the threshold had been exceeded. Using this method, insecticide treatment has been found to be largely unnecessary unless the pest population is very high and/or there are many pest reservoirs (wild hosts) nearby,

16 pest and pathogen ecology for sustainable crop management Sex pheromone trap developed > for monitoring raspberry cane midge and scheduling treatments and is likely to only be required in hot spots or at the edges of the crop in the early years of treatment. Raspberry cane midge: Raspberry cane midge attack splits in raspberry primocanes, weakening them and allowing entrance of disease. The pest is controlled by sprays of chlorpyrifos, a toxic broad-spectrum organophosphate insecticide with an uncertain future on raspberry. A sex pheromone monitoring trap for raspberry cane midge was devised and calibrated and demonstrated to be valuable for directing treatments to control the midge. A good linear relationship between the numbers of midges captured in the trap and the numbers of larvae developing in splits in canes was demonstrated and a nominal threshold for the timing of sprays established. The traps are available commercially at reasonable cost, and as a result of this project are now widely used and are proving valuable for rationalising the use of sprays against this pest, which otherwise would be applied routinely. In an iterative process of testing and development between 2006 and 2010, the efficacies of eight different methods of exploiting the raspberry cane midge sex pheromone for control of the pest through Mating Disruption, Mass Trapping and Attract and Kill were evaluated in 21 large-scale, unreplicated field experiments. The main challenges were developing a formulation which would be practical for growers to apply and which would give a sustained adequate release of pheromone through the season. The work demonstrated that pheromone control could be achieved, and the results implied that mating disruption occurred through false trail following, which was likely to be most effective if large numbers of devices were used per ha. The results also suggest that initial populations of the midge have to be low for successful control. This is a limitation of many single component approaches, but emphasises the need for

17 < A dollop of the SPLAT formulation of the raspberry cane midge sex pheromone used for mating disruption in a raspberry plantation, applied to the irrigation pipe a convenient place as no polythene mulch was available. This is the first successful use of a sex pheromone for control of a midge pest. Powdery mildew on a strawberry leaf > multiple combined approaches within IPM of soft fruit pests. In the last year of the project, a wax emulsion SPLAT (Specialised Pheromone & Lure Application Technology, ISCA technologies, CA, USA) was developed and shown to be suitable due to ease of application and steady release rate. The amorphous and flowable quality of this formulation means that its application can be mechanised, making application of large numbers of treatment spots per ha economically feasible. Further work is necessary to optimise the dose and number and size of treatment spots per ha to obtain a reliable and acceptable degree of efficacy. This is the first time that a sex pheromone has been successfully exploited for control of a midge pest. The characteristic volatile chemical bouquet produced by freshly split raspberry primocanes, which is known to be attractive to mated gravid raspberry cane midge females, was also characterised. Artificial lures emulating the bouquet using different mixes and dispenser types were produced, but these were mainly attractive to males in the field and attraction of females has not yet been demonstrated. Powdery mildew: This disease was found to be much less of a problem than envisaged and reported by growers. We established the genetic differences between powdery mildews on raspberry and strawberry, which were previously believed to be caused by the same fungal species (Podosphaera aphanis). We showed the mildews on these two hosts to be genetically distinct. Sequencing the Internal Transcribed Spacer region of a number of selected samples from the two fungi clearly indicated that these two fungi are genetically different. Results of cross-inoculation tests done in three environments support the hypothesis that isolates on raspberry and strawberry do not infect the other host.

18 pest and pathogen ecology for sustainable crop management < Blackcurrant spraying > Aphid infected with parasite Aphids: We demonstrated that excellent control of aphids can be achieved by an autumn spray of insecticide and that development of infestations during the growing season can be prevented by introductions of mixtures of parasitoids. Integrated system: An Integrated Pest and Disease Management (IPDM) programme for raspberries that greatly reduces the use of pesticides during flowering and fruiting and the incidence of pesticide residues was successfully developed. Large-scale commercial field testing on two farms in the last two years of the project showed that the IPDM programme gives acceptable results with no substantive change in yield or quality. The work showed that, depending on the extent to which existing grower cane management practices (which vary considerably) need to be improved, increased variable costs of between 300 and 540 per ha ( 25 45/t assuming an average yield of 12 t/ha) are likely to arise if the programme is implemented. These costs are not considered to be excessive in relation to the value of the crop and the benefits of greatly reduced pesticide residues. An HDC factsheet setting out how the programme should be implemented has been released. Contact: Professor Jerry Cross (email: jerry.cross@emr.ac.uk) Funding from Defra, HortLINK, HDC and the East Malling Trust is gratefully acknowledged

20 resource efficiency for crop production: Dr Chris Atkinson The Resource Efficiency for Crop Production programme focuses on understanding crop and environmental interactions, and manipulating below ground biotic interactions to deliver improved resource use efficiency and food security. Our science includes investigations of how plants and fungi respond to environmental and biotic stresses to enable manipulation for improving crop yields and quality, and devising novel ways in which nutrient availability and uptake can be manipulated to optimise nutrient use efficiency under low input growing systems. We also focus on understanding the below ground processes that determine crop yield and quality, including microbial compositing, and how these can be manipulated to reduce waste and extend shelf-life. New water-saving irrigation strategies, derived from a detailed understanding of plant water use, have the potential to make food production more sustainable in resource-limited areas, and significant improvements in water productivity have already been achieved in commercial trials. Our expertise is also helping to inform longer-term development of new varieties and novel irrigation strategies. New approaches are being developed to improve nutrient acquisition and optimise nutrient use efficiency under low input growing systems. Resource supply also has an important regulatory role in the production of plant secondary metabolites (e.g. antioxidants). These metabolites are involved in a wide range of processes which include plant pest defence, disease resistance and coping with abiotic stresses and the maintenance of cellular function during crop storage, along with the supply of dietary phytochemicals essential for human health. Extending fresh produce storage potential/shelf-life and improving phytonutrient content is key to optimising resource use.

21 Understanding how crops tolerate stress is fundamental to improving crop productivity in sub-optimal environments. To reduce the impacts of global climate change on food supply, research that focuses on the development of appropriate new crops and cropping systems is needed. Advances in molecular tools are now seen as the way to develop detailed mechanistic understanding of genetic disorders and how crops respond to abiotic stress. This understanding could be used in a beneficial way to deliver more robust crops and promote quality traits which impact on consumer health and product shelf-life. Research into adaptation to biotic stress includes understanding fungal responses to viral infection and how double-stranded RNA molecules move within cells and between production sites. < Blossom in an intensive pear plantation (far left), irrigation monitoring in the same orchard (centre) and roots of Poinsettia grown in a split pot (above). The results of two different treatments can be seen on the left and right side of the pot Below ground processes are fundamentally important in determining yield, but there is limited mechanistic understanding of how this is achieved. The acquisition of water and mineral ions, for example, are key traits which define the perennial habit and the storage of recyclable resources below ground (e.g. carbon and nitrogen). A more thorough understanding of these complex interactive events will provide opportunities to manipulate the crop soil/media interface. Altering the substrate chemistry/microbial flora is an important route to enhancing resource acquisition and reducing the impacts of environmental stress. Sustaining these types of benefits offers the opportunity to improve resource use efficiency, yield and product quality in perennial and clonal crops.

22 resource efficiency for crop production Water use efficiency trials at East Malling Water use efficiency in crops Most soft fruit produced commercially in the UK is now grown under cover, and so irrigation is essential to ensure that quality at market date matches the specifications demanded by retailers and consumers. Soft fruit cropped areas have increased by 22% in the last 10 years, with UK production now worth an estimated 391 million. This rapid expansion has led to a sustained increase in the demand for irrigation. However, the major soft fruit growing areas in England are in the south east, east and west midlands, where public, industrial and agricultural demands on water supplies are already high. Less water is available per capita in the south east of England than in parts of the Mediterranean and the predicted rise in summer temperatures and extended growing seasons will exacerbate the situation. Similar issues face many growers overseas, and improving the consistency of supply and product quality while optimising the use of natural resources is a global challenge. However, there are few scientifically-derived guidelines for growers on how best to schedule irrigation, and matching demand with supply can be difficult in the changeable UK climate. Due to the high economic value of soft fruit, some growers tend to over-irrigate as an insurance policy. However, this can lead to excessive vegetative growth, increased disease pressure, and fruit with reduced consumer health benefits and shelf-life along with associated increases in waste fruit. Berry flavour profiles (eating quality) can also be reduced because these key compounds are diluted by the high water content. The leaching of nitrates and other nutrients can also increase diffuse pollution, which is particularly important in environmentally sensitive areas (e.g. Nitrate Vulnerable Zones). If growers are to maintain or increase yields against a backdrop of increasing summer temperatures, dwindling water supplies, and government demands for greater

23 > Commercial strawberry growing < Some of the strawberries grown on the East Malling experimental plot environmental protection, new production methods that improve water and nutrient use efficiency and utilise best practice are needed. Strategic research at EMR with substrate-grown strawberry has shown that if an irrigation scheduling regime is used so that plant demand is matched with supply, water savings of up to 30% can be achieved compared to current commercial recommendations, without affecting yield or quality of class 1 fruit. We have shown that further water savings can be achieved by applying deficit irrigation, which involves applying less water than the plant needs at each irrigation event so that some roots are gradually exposed to drying soil and lower soil water (matric) potentials. These roots produce chemical signals, such as abscisic acid (ABA) that are transported to the shoots where they invoke several physiological responses, such as reducing leaf canopy area and closing stomatal pores to limit plant water loss. Manipulating in planta signalling in this way can deliver significant water savings, and the concomitant reductions in vegetative growth can lead to improvements in fruit quality. However, it is vital, economically, that yields of marketable fruit are maintained under deficit regimes and, in the past, other researchers have not achieved this when attempting to develop novel irrigation approaches. Experiments using containerised plants at EMR have repeatedly shown that imposing RDI regimes that delivered 80% of evaporative demand maintained yields of class 1 fruit and increased several aspects of fruit quality, including antioxidant capacity and flavour volatile production. Our challenge was to deliver these approaches and benefits into UK commercial practice. In a five-year HortLINK programme at EMR, a scientifically-based irrigation scheduling regime was developed for field-grown strawberries. Irrigation set points were derived by

24 resource efficiency for crop production Brix testing < Data logger with telemetry monitoring changes in soil water availability in a commercial pear orchard (G H Dean & Co. Ltd) identifying the soil matric potentials at which shoot physiological responses to drying soil were first triggered. The frequency and duration of irrigation events were then adjusted to maintain soil matric potential within the rooting zone between upper and lower set points. In our field experiments, we were able to reduce water inputs by 70% without reducing class 1 yields or quality. To test whether these improvements could be achieved in commercial production systems, trials on growers farms were carried out in 2010 and 2011. In 2010, water savings of 36% were achieved under the new Grower Test Regime (GTR) and improvements in berry eating quality (firmness and flavour) were also apparent, compared to the Commercial Control (CC). The GTR was tested in 2011 on four grower sites to determine how the approach coped with differences in soil type. Water savings of between 3 and 36% were achieved and fertiliser savings of between 3 and 19% were also delivered. Yields of class 1 fruit were increased under the GTR by 5 15% and berry flavour, assessed by professional taste panels, was also improved under the GTR. Aspects of fruit quality including berry firmness and shelf-life potential were also improved. The results from these grower trials are particularly encouraging, since the grower partners in the HortLINK consortium are already water conscious and use considerably less water than the industry average. Values of Water Productivity (cubic metres of water used to produce 1 tonne class 1 fruit) in our grower trials ranged from 30 37 under the commercial irrigation regimes and from 25 28 under the GTR. In 2008, the average industry WP value was 78; the WP industry average value for 2011 is being calculated at the time of writing. This new irrigation scheduling regime will be integrated into commercial production in 2012.

25 > The approaches described above are readily transferable to other crops, and we have demonstrated the potential to use these techniques to reduce water inputs and improve product quality in substrate-grown strawberry and raspberry, orchard-grown pears, field-grown potatoes, potted living herbs and containerised ornamental crops such as roses and poinsettia. Advances in our scientific understanding of how crops respond to environmental stresses have also enabled us to develop novel irrigation regimes to impose beneficial stresses that deliver more robust crops and promote quality traits which impact on consumer health and product shelf-life. Water monitoring in container herb growing (far left) potatoes from the WUE plot at East Malling (left) and containerised ornamental plants being monitored in the nursery (above) Contact: Dr Christopher Atkinson (email: chris.atkinson@emr.ac.uk) Funding from Defra, HortLINK, HDC and the East Malling Trust is gratefully acknowledged < Herb tasting and assessments for vigour, colour and visual appeal in the Grodome at East Malling

communications getting the word out: Dr Ursula Twomey 27 The communications team at EMR is responsible for implementing an integrated programme of external communications activities for EMR, driving the transfer of information from scientific R&D activities, with particular responsibility for knowledge transfer to members of EMRA and to the horticulture and associated industries. Presenter Chris Beardshaw interviews Chris Atkinson. Dan Sargent genetically fingerprinting an unknown apple variety (below) > The year as a whole 2011 has, as ever, been an eventful year at East Malling, with over 100 non-science visitors hosted at over 10 events, in excess of 175 articles in the trade press, national press and several TV appearances by our very own TV doctor Dr Chris Atkinson. The communications team were heavily involved in researching and facilitating a programme for BBC 4 entitled The History of the Apple, which was broadcast in June and repeated several times thereafter. The programme, fronted by flying gardener Chris Beardshaw, showcased the important early research on apple conducted at East Malling, highlighting the lasting legacy of some of that research, e.g. 80% of the world s commercial orchards are grown on rootstock M.9. As a quid pro quo for our efforts, the BBC digitised some of EMR s old film archive for the programme, which a member of the team has recently converted to an editable format. A snippet which showed Jesse Amos at work in the field was used during the Amos Memorial Lecture. Visits We were delighted to welcome The International Fruit Tree Association for their

28 communications getting the word out annual conference, with 40 attendees from across the globe. In addition, the West Sussex Fruit Group, Kosovan Ministry of Agriculture, Shaanxi Agricultural Science and the College of the Atlantic, USA, visited the site throughout the year. Informal visits of note included a photographer commissioned to produce an exhibition on apples for Nottingham City Council as part of their Orchard project (www.orchardsneinton.co.uk). In partnership with the East Malling Conference Centre, several informal tours were arranged for senior citizens eating at Bramleys restaurant. East Malling Research Association (EMRA) EMRA continues to be a key plank in EMR s communication strategy and 2011 saw the annual EMRA Storage Day, held in association with the Marden Fruit Show Society AGM, take place in March, attracting an audience of 100 growers, advisors, educators and others industry representatives. In June an evening Strawberry Walk was held for members of HDC and EMRA. Our Strawberry breeders showcased exciting new main-season selections and EMR s Dr Michelle Fountain spoke about European tarnished plant bug monitoring. The EMRA Food Safety Day in November was a departure from the normal range of topics covered by such events. This was prompted following the detrimental effects of E. coli on the European salad and vegetable industry, earlier in 2011. All who attended the event considered it to be very worthwhile.

29 The Amos Memorial Lecture, a bi-annual lecture, was delivered this year by Professor Wyn Grant of the University of Warwick, on the topic Safe, Sustainable, Sufficient: the challenge for food. As always, the lecture was well attended, with notable guests including the Mayor of Tonbridge & Malling, former Amos Memorial Lecturer and Sun newspaper gardening journalist, Peter Seabrook, and Jesse Amos s daughter, Miss Margaret Amos. The final EMRA event of the year, the Soft Fruit Day, was held in association with the HDC, attracting over 100 delegates and six trade stands. Members Day summary reports for events held at the end of 2010 and from the Storage Day in 2011 were produced and distributed to Members. Reports for events held at the end of 2011 are being collated for publication in 2012. Two EMRA newsletters were produced, containing news and science updates from EMR, EML and EMT. Public engagement For National Science and Engineering Week, EMR sponsored and hosted 24 students from three sixth-form colleges for lectures and hands-on activities. The event engaged young adults from the local community with EMR s science and provided an opportunity to discuss scientific ideas and their industry applications. A new one-day rural awareness event Farming Futures, targeted learners in year groups 8 to 13, from all over Kent. Some of the science conducted at EMR was showcased together with the possibilities that a research career has to offer.

30 communications getting the word out Visitors arrivng for the Hatton Gardens and Bradbourne House Open day EMR hosted an evening visit from the youth group of the West Malling Baptist Church. Their highlight was tasting some of the amazing new selections of strawberry provided by the breeding team. Dr Chris Atkinson and Prof. Julian Ma with Yvette Austin and colleague from BBC South East News > The Bradbourne House and Gardens Open Day, when the house and gardens were opened in aid of the National Gardens Scheme (NGS), was a huge success, attracting double the number that usually attend, and raising over 2000 for charity. Representatives of the NGS presented a plaque to mark 30 consecutive years of opening for their charity. In addition to an exhibit on fruit breeding from EMR, new attractions included exhibits and apiary visits by the Mid-Kent Beekeepers. Media relations In addition to the many instances of television, radio, local, regional and national newspaper coverage of EMR s research, instigated through the work of agents, Maxim, PR has focused on the fundamental value of the scientific work being undertaken and its wider application in helping growers adapt to the impact of climate change, and the broader issue of UK food security. Twenty-one press releases covering key stories throughout the year secured strong media coverage, including national and regional television, radio, newspapers and trade press. Topics included EMR s associated status with the University of Reading; the first harvest

31 Adrian Padfield (East Malling Trust), Jane Stretfield and Jacqueline Anthony (National Gardens Scheme) Medlars In Hatton Garden of melons by East Malling Limited, a commercial subsidiary of the East Malling Trust (this was a project undertaken in partnership with Mack Multiples); food labelling and the issue of waste; medical breakthroughs including anti-malarial properties of artemisia and HIV prevention through chemicals produced by engineered tobacco plants; and short courses for the trade and amateur gardeners. The communications team team also facilitated an article and interview with Chris Atkinson on the Hatton Garden and fruit tree pruning for national gardening magazine Grow Your Own. Finally, the communications team participate in the Hadlow Rural Focus Press Group. This group has representatives from 14 different organisations with an interest in rural matters, and discusses topics that have an impact or reflect on the sector, after which the group is interviewed by an invited journalist. The group is achieving excellent reportage and EMR contributes information that runs in regular series in four regional titles and one national. Shows The sun shone and the rain kept off (for most of the day) during Fruit Focus 2011 in July. Delicious new strawberry selections from EMR were showcased, along with popular farm tours that featured EMR s Concept Pear Orchard, strawberry substrate production research and two new varieties from the Strawberry Breeding Club. The team also arranged a champagne reception to launch EMR s new logo. In October, EMR took at stand at the National Fruit Show, highlighting the breadth

32 communications getting the word out EMR stand at the National Fruit Show 2011 of EMR s tree fruit breeding research, particularly new collaborations for cherry, apple scion and rootstock breeding. The launch of EMR s new logo was once again celebrated with a beautifully crafted apple cake provided by a talented member of staff. Contact: Dr Ursula Twomey (email: ursula.twomey@emr.ac.uk) 2011 in pictures. Clockwise from top left: EMR s stand at the Farming Futures show in Detling > Dr Xiangming Xu at the UK-China Agri-tech meeting in Beijing Apple scrumping at the Bradbourne House and Hatton Garden open day Part of the 2010 pear crop in the intensive pear orchard, From left Dr Theresa Huxley (Sainsburys), Francis Wheatley (A G Thames), Graham Caspell (Farm Manager) and Dr Chris Atkinson Strawberries and champagne at the EMR rebrand launch at Fruit Focus, East Malling Prof. Julian Ma and Dr Chris Atkinson in the Grodome with some of the tobacco plants being used in HIV prevention and treatments < Rebranding launched at Fruit Focus.

34 emr: staff publications Included here are scientific publications, reviews, books or book chapters externally peer reviewed or edited; similarly edited contributions to learned society proceedings; theses; and articles in the horticultural trade press. Not included in this list are abstracts, presentations (commodity, Members or open days, etc.); posters; interim or final reports on contracts, e.g. HDC, Defra, and commercial in confidence ; patents (granted or applied for); plant variety rights (granted or applied for); protein or DNA sequences submitted to online databases; web page items. Refereed journals: ATKINSON C.J., FITZGERALD J.D., HIPPS N.A. (2011). Soil sequestering carbon using biochar. Biologist 58 (2), 42 44 BERRIE A.M., XU X.-M. & JOHNSON D.S. (2011). Lower temperatures more effective than atmosphere modification in controlling botrytis and nectria rots in stored apples. Journal of Phytopathology 159, 73 79 CANELAS A.B., HARRISON N., FAZIO A., ZHANG J., PITKÄNEN J.P., VAN DEN BRINK J., BAKKER B.M., BOGNER L., BOUWMAN J., CASTRILLO J.I., CANKORUR A., CHUMNANPUEN P., DARAN-LAPUJADE P., DIKICIOGLU D., VAN EUNEN K., EWALD J.C., HEIJNEN J.J., KIRDAR B., MATTILA I., MENSONIDES F.I., NIEBEL A., PENTTILÄ M., PRONK J.T., REUSS M., SALUSJÄRVI L., SAUER U., SHERMAN D., SIEMANN-HERZBERG M., WESTERHOFF H., DE WINDE J., PETRANOVIC D., OLIVER S.G., WORKMAN C.T., ZAMBONI N., NIELSEN J. (2011). Integrated multilaboratory systems biology reveals differences in protein metabolism between two reference yeast strains. Nature Communications 1,145 EASTWOOD D.C., HENDERSON J. & BURTON, K.S. (2011). Genome organisation and transcription response to harvest of two metallothionein-like genes in Agaricus bisporus fruiting bodies. Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology 21(5), 455 463; DOI: 10.4014/jmb.1007.07031 DAVIES M. J., ATKINSON C. J., BURNS C., ARROO R., WOOLLEY J. (2011). Increases in leaf artemisinin concentration in Artemisia annua in response to the application of phosphorus and boron. Industrial Crops and Products 34, 3, 1465 1473 DAVIES M. J., LONGBOTTOM H., ATKINSON C. J. (2011). Changes in duration of rhizome cold storage and manipulation of the growing environment to promote field establishment of Miscanthus giganteus. Biomass & Bioenergy 35 (10), 4268 4279 EVANS K.M., FERNÁNDEZ-FERNÁNDEZ F., GOVAN C., CLARKE J.B. & TOBUTT K.R. (2011). Development of a New Apple Rootstock Framework Map. Act Horticulturae (ISHS) 903, 69 74 EVANS K.M., PATOCCHI A., REZZONICO F., MATHIS F., DUREL C.E., FERNÁNDEZ-FERNÁNDEZ F., BOUDICHEVSKAIA A., DUNEMANN F., STANKIEWICZ-KOSYL M., GIANFRANCESCHI L., KOMJANC M., LATEUR M., MADDURI M., NOORDIJK Y., van de WEG W.E. (2011). Genotyping of pedigreed apple breeding material with a genome-covering set of SSRs: trueness to type of cultivars and their parentages. Molecular Breeding 28 (4), 535 547 FERNÁNDEZ-FERNÁNDEZ F., ANTANAVICIUTE L., GOVAN C.L., SARGENT D.J. (2011). Development of a multiplexed microsatellite set for fingerprinting red raspberry (Rubus idaeus) germplasm and its transferability to other Rubus species. Journal of Berry Research 1, 177 187 FITZGERALD J. & JAY C.N. (2011). Chemical control of the European tarnished plant bug, Lygus rugulipennis, on strawberry in the UK. Crop Protection 30, 1178 1183 FOUNTAIN M.T., HARRIS A.L., XU X.-M. & CROSS J.V. (2011). Timing and efficacy of insecticides for control of mussel scale, Lepidosaphes ulmi, on apple using predictive models. Crop Protection, 31, 58 66 GRANT O.M., DAVIES M.J., JAMES C.M., JOHNSON A.W., LEINONEN I. & SIMPSON D.W. (2011). Thermal imaging and carbon isotope composition indicate variation amongst strawberry (Fragaria ananassa) cultivars in stomatal conductance and water use efficiency. Environmental and Experimental Botany 76, 7 15 GREGORY P.J. (2011). Crop root systems and nutrient uptake from soils. In: The Molecular and Physiological Basis of Nutrient Use Efficiency in Crops (Eds M.J. Hawkesford & P. Barraclough). John Wiley & Sons Inc., Chichester, UK. 21 45 GREGORY P.J. & GEORGE T.S. (2011). Feeding nine billion: the challenge to sustainable crop production. Journal of Experimental Botany 62, 5233 5239

HARRISON N. & KIDNER C.A. (2011). Next-generation sequencing and systematics: What can a billion base pairs of DNA sequence data do for you? Taxon 60 (6),1552 1566 HARRISON R.J. & CHARLESWORTH, B. (2011). Biased gene conversion affects patterns of codon usage and amino acid usage in the Saccharomyces sensu stricto group of yeasts. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 28 (1), 117 29 HARRISON N. & HARRISON R. (2011). On the evolutionary history of the domestic apple. Nature Genetics, 43 (11), 1043 4 KISS L., PINTYE A., KOVÁC S., JANKOVICS T., FONTAINE M.C., HARVEY N., XU X.-M., NICOT P.C., BARDIN M., SHYKOFF J.A. & GIRAUD T. (2011). Temporal isolation explains host-related genetic differentiation in a group of widespread mycoparasitic fungi. Molecular Ecology 20, 1492 1507 LI B.-H., MADDEN L.V. & XU X.-M. (2011). An alternative SADIE local clustering index for studying spatial patterns. Methods in Ecology and Evolution, DOI: 10.1111/j.2041 210X.2011.00165.x MITCHELL C., BRENNAN R. M., CROSS J.V. & JOHNSON, S.N. (2011). Arthropod pests of currant and gooseberry crops in the U.K.: their biology, management and future prospects. Agricultural & Forest Entomology 13, 221 237 MOSLONKA-LEFEBVRE M., FINLEY A., DORIGATTI I., DEHNEN-SCHMUTZ K., HARWOOD T., JEGER M.J., XU X.-U., HOLDENRIEDER O. & PAUTASSO M. (2011). Networks in plant epidemiology: from genes to landscapes, countries and continents. Phytopathology 101, 392 403 NEWTON A.C., JOHNSON S.N. & GREGORY P.J. (2011). Implications of climate change for pests, diseases, crop yield and food security. Euphytica 179, 3 8. DOI: 10.1007/s10681 011-0359 4 NOBLE R. (2011). Risks and benefits of soil amendment with composts in relation to plant pathogens. Australasian Plant Pathology 40, 157 167 NOBLE R., BLACKBURN J., THORP G., DOBROVIN-PENNINGTON A., PIETRAVALLE S., KERINS G., ALLNUTT T.R., HENRY C.M. (2011). Potential for eradication of the exotic plant pathogens Phytophthora kernoviae and Phytophthora ramorum during composting. Plant Pathology 60, 1077 1085 NOBLE R., DOBROVIN-PENNINGTON A. PIETRAVALLE S., HENRY C.M (2011). Composting of rhododendron and bilberry wastes to contain the spread of the exotic plant pathogens Phytophthora kernoviae and Phytophthora ramorum. Compost Science & Utilization 19, 219 225 NOBLE R., DOBROVIN-PENNINGTON A., PIETRAVALLE S., WEEKES R., HENRY C.M. (2011). Indicator organisms for assessing sanitization during composting of plant wastes. Waste Management 31, 1711 1719 POWLSON D.S., GREGORY P.J., WHALLEY W.R., QUINTON J.N., HOPKINS D.W., WHITMORE A.P., HIRSCH P.R. & GOULDING K.W.T. (2011). Soil management in relation to sustainable agriculture and ecosystem services. Food Policy 36, S72 S87. DOI: 10.1016/j.foodpol.2010.11.025 SARGENT D.J., KUCHTA P., LOPEZ GIRONA E., ZHANG H., DAVIS T.M., CELTON J M., MARCHESE M., KORBIN M., FOLTA K.M., SHULAEV V. & SIMPSON D.W. (2011). Simple sequence repeat marker development and mapping targeted to previously unmapped regions of the strawberry genome sequence. The Plant Genome 4, 165 177 SARGENT D.J., PASSEY T.A.J., SURBANOVSKI N., LOPEZ GIRONA E., KUCHTA P., DAVIK J., HARRISON R.J., PASSEY A.J., WHITEHOUSE A.B. & SIMPSON D.W. (2012). A microsatellite linkage map for the cultivated strawberry (Fragaria x ananassa) suggests extensive regions of homozygosity in the genome may have resulted from breeding and selection. Theoretical and Applied Genetics: DOI: 10.1007/s00122 011 1782-6 SWANSON J.D., CARLSON J.E., FERNÁNDEZ-FERNÁNDEZ F., FINN C.E., GRAHAM J., WEBER C. & SARGENT D.J. (2011). Blackberries and Raspberries Genetics. Eds Folta K. & Gardiner S. Chapter 3: 64 113 TURECHEK W.W., MADDEN L.V., GENT D.H. & XU X.-M. (2011). Comments regarding the binary power law for heterogeneity of disease incidence. Phytopathology 10, 1396 1407 WALKLATE P.J., CROSS J.V., PERGER G., (2011). Support system for efficient dosage of orchard and vineyard products. Computers and Electronics in Agriculture 75, 355 362 WHITEHOUSE A.B., GOVAN C.L., HAMMOND K.J., SARGENT D.J. & SIMPSON D.W. (2011) Meristem culture for the elimination of the strawberry crown rot pathogen Phytophthora cactorum. Journal of Berry Research 1, 129 136 XU X.-M. (2011). Managing plant diseases with cultivar mixtures within and between seasons. Plant Pathology 60, 857 865 35

36 XU X.-M., JEFFRIES P., PAUTASSO M. & JEGER M.J. (2011). Combined use of biocontrol agents to manage plant diseases in theory and practice: a review. Phytopathology 101, 1024 1031 XU X.-M., JEFFRIES P., PAUTASSO M. & JEGER M. J. (2011). A numerical study of combined use of two biocontrol agents with different biocontrol mechanisms in controlling foliar pathogens Phytopathology 101, 1032 1044 XU X.-M., WEDGWOOD E., BERRIE A.M., ALLEN J. & O NEILL T.M. (2011). Epidemiology of strawberry and raspberry grey mould in open field and under protection. Agronomy for Sustainable Development DOI: 10.1007/s13593-011-0032-2 Other publications: BERRIE A.M. (2011). Results of HDC-funded projects on (1) Sustainable control of storage rots of apple and (2) Evaluation of treatments to control mouldy core of apple. EMRA Members Day report 24 March 2011 BERRIE A.M. (2011). The zero residue management system for apples. HDC Factsheet 15/11 BERRIE A.M., FITZGERALD J.D. & COPAS E. (2011). Developing orchards for future cider apple production. Handout for Bath and West Show, Shepton Malett, 1 4 June 2011 BERRIE A.M. & ROSE C (2011). Mastering rot risk assessments. HDC Training DVD BERRIE A.M., XU, X.-M. WEDGWOOD E. & O NEILL T. (2011). Integrated management of Botrytis cinerea in protected raspberries to minimise fungicide residues in the fruit. Integrated Plant Protection in Soft Fruit, IOBC/wprs Bulletin, 70 2011, 37 43 CROSS J.V. (2011). Alternatives to Pesticides: Recent Advances in Fruit Crop Protection That Could Be Transferred to Ornamentals. IPPS Conference Proceedings, Ipswich, 2010, 3 10 BURTON K.S. (2011). Research to reduce bruise damage and improve quality. Conference proceedings of the All Ireland Mushroom Conference and Trade Show, Maintaining the Momentum, 20 21 October 2011, 43 44 BURTON K.S., GREEN J., BAKER A., EASTWOOD D. & GROGAN H. (2011). Mushroom Virus X The Identification Of Brown Cap Mushroom Virus and a New Highly Sensitive Diagnostic Test for Phase III Compost. Proceedings of the 7th International Conference on Mushroom Biology and Mushroom Products (ICMBMP7) 2011, 466 473 FITZGERALD J.D. & JAY C.N. (2011). Strategies for release of Neoseiulus (Amblyseius) cucumeris to control western flower thrips, Frankliniella occidentalis, in tunnel grown everbearer strawberries. IOBC/WPRS Bulletin 70, 97 100 FOUNTAIN M.T., CROSS J.V., FARMAN D. & HALL D. (2011). Using pheromones to monitor Lygus populations in fruit crops in the UK. Pheromones and other semio-chemicals IOBC/wprs Bulletin, 72, 7 13 GREGORY P.J. (2011). Funding of agricultural and food security research: past successes and future challenges. Foresight Project on Global Food and Farming Futures, Science review SR 46 JAY C.N. & FOUNTAIN M.T. (2011). The 90m-a-year unpaid workforce. HDC News July/August 2011 14 15 NOBLE R. (2011). Peat substitution in mushroom casing. Proceedings of the All Ireland Mushroom Conference, Monaghan, October 2011 NOBLE R. & WILSON D. (2011). When too much nitrogen is luxury for herbs. HDC News No. 171: 18 19 NOBLE R. (2011.) The case for peat substitution. HDC News No.179: 30 SAUNDERS, G.M. (2011). Standing up for stone fruit. HDC News No.177, 20 21 RAFFLE S. & BERRIE A.M. (2011) A new understanding of apple rots. National Fruit Show Handbook 2011, 42 44 BURTON K.S. (2011). Genetic testing puts growers a step ahead of disease. HDC News, March 2011, 22 23

38 emr: accounts INCOME 2010/11 TOTAL: 4,320,000 EXPENDITURE 2010/11 TOTAL: 4,452,000 BALANCE SHEET 31st March 2011

emr: staff list 2011 39 CHIEF EXECUTIVE Professor Peter J Gregory BSc PhD Hon. Dr (Debrecen) CBiol FBS FRASE 1,2 Personal Assistant: Angela Chapple COMPANY SECRETARY AND HEAD OF COMMUNICATIONS Ian Hardie BSc ACIS Administration: Sue Sadler Business Development: Neil Hipps BSc PhD Communications Manager: Ursula Twomey BSc PhD Finance Director and Head of Human Resources Tony Lock BA FCA Finance Officer: Philip Smith Senior HR Officer: Maddie Neikter INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY Head of IT: Kevin Jacques Conrad McGlinn Science Programmes: GENETICS AND CROP IMPROVEMENT Programme Leader: David Simpson BSc PhD Laima Antanaviciute BSc Feli Fernández Fernández BSc NSch Nicola Harrison BSc Richard Harrison BSc PhD Abi Johnson BSc Kirsty McLeary BSc Andy J Passey BSc Daniel J Sargent* BSc MA PhD Nada Surbanovski* BSc PhD Adam Whitehouse BSc PEST AND PATHOGEN ECOLOGY FOR SUSTAINABLE CROP MANAGEMENT Programme Leader: Professor Jerry Cross MA FRES MBPR (Hort) DPhil 3 Angela M Berrie BSc MBRP (Hort) PhD Jean D Fitzgerald BSc PhD Michelle Fountain BSc PhD Adrian L Harris BSc MSc DIC Chantelle N Jay BSc MA PhD Karen Lower Csaba Nagy BSc (PhD student) Thomas A J Passey BSc Joyce Robinson Louisa Robinson-Boyer BSc (PhD student) Woody Rungjindamai BSc (PhD student) Robert Saville BSc PhD Helen Thomas BSc (PhD student) Professor Xiangming Xu BSc PhD 4,5,6 RESOURCE EFFICIENCY FOR CROP PRODUCTION Senior Programme Leader and Deputy Chief Executive: Christopher J Atkinson BSc PhD Kerry S Burton BSc PhD Greg Deakin BSc (PhD student) Abi Dalton FdSc Mike J Davies BSc MSc Andreja Dobrovin-Pennington Mark Else BSc PhD Clare Hopson Helen Longbottom BSc Professor Ralph Noble BSc PhD 7 June Taylor Btec Karen Thurston BSc Fiona Wilson BSc

40 HORTICULTURAL SERVICES SCIENCE Manager: Gary M Saunders BSC MPhil Roger Payne Maxim Osipovs Sylvia Rogers Harry Stevens Visiting Workers Tomas Bilcius Poland (March October 2011) Sebastian Clave France (June August 2011) Gloria Endredi Hungary (April October 2011) Tracie Evans England (March September 2011) Marina Gomez-Caro Gonzalez Spain (May November 2011) Miriam Houtermans Germany (October November 2011) Benjamin Langendorf France (June September 2011) Judit Linka Hungary (June March 2012) Antonio Lorente Garcia Spain (February March 2012) Maria Lumbreras Martinez Spain (August January 2012) Laurence Mason England (January September 2011) Csaba Nagy Hungary (April October 2011) Sergejs Nikiforovs Latvia (March 2011) Estefania Novoa Rama Spain (May November 2011) Pablo Sanz Casado Spain (June December 2011) 1 Professor of Global Food Security, University of Reading 2 Honorary Professor, Universities of Abertay, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow 3 Visiting Professor, University of Greenwich 4 Honorary Professor, University of Kent 5 Honorary Professor, Northwest Agriculture & Forestry University, China 6 Honorary Professor, Qingdao Agricultural University, China 7 Honorary Professor, Zhejiang Academy of Agricultural Sciences, China * left during 2011

emr: research projects 2011 emr project lead given in brackets 41 Defra-commissioned projects Options for the development of a model for evaluation of bystander and residential exposures to pesticides used in orchard, hop and bush fruit application (J.V. Cross) Determination of the response of strawberry to water-limited conditions, identification of quantitative trait loci (QTL) associated with water use efficiency (WUE) and development of molecular markers for use in a genetic improvement programme (D.W. Simpson) Development of a methodology to detect and measure the peat content in a bag of growing media (J.D. Fitzgerald) Development of improved cultivars to reduce the environmental impact of strawberry production in the United Kingdom (D.W. Simpson) Development of zero and minimal herbicide regimes for controlling weeds on hard surfaces and determining their emissions (N.A. Hipps) Genomics tools for preselection of water-use efficiency in top fruit rootstocks (F. Fernández Fernández) Improving dose expression and adjustment for row crops (J.V. Cross) Improving water efficiency and tuber quality in potato production by optimising irrigation scheduling (M.A. Else) Management of apple scab (X.-M. Xu) Pesticide dose Adjustment to the Crop Environment (PACE) into fruit tree spraying practice (J.V. Cross) To develop novel irrigation strategies to improve water use efficiency and fruit flavour, quality and shelf-life (M.A. Else) Defra LINK-funded projects Biological, semiochemical and selective chemical management methods for insecticide resistant western flower thrips on protected strawberry (J.V. Cross) Developing biocontrol methods and their integration in sustainable pest and disease management in plum and cherry production (J.V. Cross) Developing biocontrol methods and their integration in sustainable pest and disease management in blackcurrant production (J.V. Cross) Exploiting semiochemicals, conservation biocontrol and selective physical methods in integrated management of pear sucker (J.V. Cross) Improving water use efficiency and fruit quality in field-grown strawberry (M.A. Else)

42 Integrated pest and disease management for high quality protected raspberry production (J.V.Cross) Minimising pesticide residues in strawberry through integrated pest, disease and environmental crop management (J.V. Cross) Optimising field-scale control of Fusarium basal rot and white rot of onion using Trichoderma amended substrates and pellets, and onion residues (R. Noble) Pheromone technology for management of capsid pests to reduce pesticide use in horticultural crops (J.V. Cross) Sustainable crop and environment protection (SCEPTRE) targeted research for edibles (J.V. Cross) Projects funded by BBSRC, Technology Strategy Board and other government sources BBSRC A genetic system to study resistance to the soil-borne pathogen Verticillium dahlia in strawberry (D.W. Simpson) Technology Strategy Board (TSB) Development and validation of molecular markers for resistance to strawberry powdery mildew (D.W. Simpson) New biofumigation-based approaches to sustainable control of soil-borne pathogens (X.-M. Xu) Projects funded by Levy Bodies Horticultural Development Company (HDC) Bulbs and Outdoor Flowers: Narcissus: suppression of Fusarium basal rot using composts amended with specific biocontrol agents (R. Noble) Hardy Nursery Stock: Developing optimum irrigation guidelines for peat, reduced peat and peat-free substrates (M.A. Else) Epidemiology and prediction of rose downy mildew (X.-M. Xu) Improving basal breaking of field-grown roses using ethylene releasing agents (M.A. Else) Mushroom: Developing new sustainable mushroom casings in relation to supply of raw materials and mushroom cropping and quality (R. Noble) Mushroom casings: screening of microbial populations in relation to mushroom quality (R. Noble)

Mushrooms desk study/literature review of the potential alternative materials to peat in mushroom casing (R. Noble) 43 Soft Fruit: Alternatives to chlorpyrifos for raspberry cane midge control (J.V. Cross) Blueberry gall midge sex pheromone monitoring and control with insecticides (J.V. Cross) Crown rot control (A.M. Berrie) Development and validation of a molecular diagnostic test for strawberry tarsonemid mite (J.V. Cross) Development of temperature degree-based models to predict pest development on strawberry (X.-M. Xu) Evaluation of acaricides and adjuvants for strawberry tarsonemid mite control (J.V. Cross) Evaluation of products for control of crown rot in strawberry (A.M. Berrie) Irrigation scheduling of substrate-grown raspberry as a tool for improving cane management (M.A. Else) Managing water and nitrogen inputs to optimise flavour and shelf-life in soil-less strawberry production (M.A. Else) Mucor and rhizopus management in strawberry and raspberry (A.M. Berrie) Preventing red berry disease by monitoring and control of blackberry mite (J.V. Cross) Sex pheromone trap for monitoring blackberry leaf midge (J.V. Cross) Top Fruit: An investigation of any correlation in the sensitivity of scab isolates to different fungicides (X.-M. Xu) Apple: evaluation of treatments to control mouldy core (A.M. Berrie) Apple: sustainable management of storage rots (A.M. Berrie) Apple: determining the effectiveness of novel calcium products to increase fruit calcium, increasing storage potential and potentially reducing bitter-pit (G.M. Saunders) Cherry and plum variety trials (G.M. Saunders) Determining the cost benefit of a range of thinning strategies for apple (G.M. Saunders) Developing water and fertilizer saving strategies to improve fruit quality and

44 sustainability of irrigated high-intensity modern and traditional pear production (M.A. Else) Evaluation and development of new rootstocks for apples, pears, cherries and plums (G.M. Saunders) Investigation of the effects of commonly used insecticides on earwigs, important predators in apple and pear (M.F. Fountain) Modulating the storage temperature of Cox apples for improved quality and control of rotting (A.M. Berrie) Optimum treatment timing to reduce over-wintering codling moth populations (J.V. Cross) Preventing red berry disease by monitoring and control of blackberry mite (J.V. Cross) Sensitivity of apple powdery mildew populations to triazole and strobilurin fungicides (A.M. Berrie) The effect of ethylene control strategies on the development of rotting in Bramleys Seedling apples (A.M. Berrie) Stone Fruit: Crop Walkers Guide (M.F. Fountain) Horticultural Fellowship: Succession planning to sustain the UK s expertise in field and laboratory plant pathology research and development (A.M. Berrie) Projects funded by the European Union ISA Fruit (European integrated research project) (A.M. Berrie) Projects funded by the East Malling Trust The Basil Neame PhD Studentship: Community structure of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) in relation to their functions in agro-ecosystems (X.-M. Xu) Projects funded from other sources International New Varieties Network (INN)/Horticultural Development Company (HDC) Breeding new apple, pear and quince rootstocks for the UK and overseas markets (F. Fernández Fernández) Teagasc PhD studentship: Understanding the biology of Mushroom Virus X by molecular characterisation, location and translocation of RNS and their role in disease epidemiology (K..S. Burton) The Worshipful Company of Fruiterers Preliminary investigation of the apple sawfly sex pheromone (J.V. Cross)

Plum storage (N.A. Hipps) 45 Pollinating insects of apples (M.F. Fountain) PRD strategies for soil-grown strawberries (M.A. Else) Waste & Resources Action Programme (WRAP) New approaches and innovation to reduce household and supply chain food waste (N.A. Hipps) Review of literature on the home freezing of food (N.A. Hipps) Calculating the environmental and cost impact of improved fridge and freezer use (N.A. Hipps) Anaerobic digestion common pests and diseases (R. Noble) In addition to the above funding, the East Malling Trust has made substantial and greatly appreciated provision towards senior management salaries. Research at EMR has also benefited from grants for overseas travel from the Worshipful Company of Fruiterers and the Glasshouse Crops Research Institute (GCRI) Trust. All this assistance is acknowledged with gratitude. There are, in addition, numerous individual industry-funded projects, some under confidential contract.

A228 emr: location London Jnct 4 New Road East Malling New Road Ditton M20 Jnct 5 A20 Larkfield Aylesford Bradbourne House Ditton King & Queen West Malling East Malling Maidstone West Malling BR East Malling BR East Malling Research, Kent, is located approximately 35 miles south east of central London and 45 miles from Dover. By road From M20: Leave the motorway at Junction 4 A228, turning south towards West Malling and Tonbridge. On the roundabout, follow signs for Tonbridge/West Malling (A228). This is the new bypass. At the traffic lights, take the left-hand lane signposted Maidstone/West Malling (A20). Turn immediately right at the traffic lights onto the A20 east-bound signposted Maidstone, Larkfield, Ditton and East Malling. At the second set of lights (by the Larkfield Priory Hotel and B&Q) turn right, signposted New Road, East Malling. East Malling Research is signposted to the left at the edge of the village, just before the King & Queen public house. From Maidstone: Leave Maidstone town centre on the A20 London Road and follow it for about 5 miles. After Ditton and Larkfield turn left at the traffic lights signposted East Malling, opposite the Larkfield Priory Hotel; thereafter follow directions as above. From Tonbridge: Follow A26 towards Maidstone, then turn left on the A228 towards West Malling and Rochester. Follow the road for about 3 miles, then at the first set of lights, turn right for the A20, again towards Maidstone. At the next set of lights, turn right signposted Maidstone, Larkfield, Ditton and East Malling. Thereafter follow directions as from M20 above. Once inside the gates, please follow the signs to the Visitors Car Park and Reception. The car park is located to the rear of the Conference Centre. On arrival, all visitors please report to Reception, located in the Conference Centre. Please note that the speed limit on site is 20 mph. By train East Malling station is on the main London to Maidstone/Ashford International line, with trains leaving London Victoria and Maidstone at hourly intervals. The journey from London takes approximately one hour. From the station, walk down the hill to the crossroads. Turn right and take the footpath past the church which leads into EMR s grounds. Once on the site, follow the road to the main building complex and straight on to EMR s reception desk located in the Conference Centre. The walk from the station takes approximately 15 minutes.

New Road, East Malling, Kent ME19 6BJ T. +44 (0)1732 843833 F. +44 (0)1732 849067 www.emr.ac.uk Registered Charity 1102243 Company registration 75019373