Cherry disease fight: Bees used in SA's world-first technique to control brown rot
Researchers at Adelaide University are introducing a world-first technique to use bees to help control brown rot in Australia's $150-million cherry industry.
Dr Katja Hogendoorn said cherries were prone to diseases at the flowering stage, with brown rot causing yield loss and spoiling fruit.
"Normally growers spray once or twice during flowering to prevent brown rot in cherries later in the season" she said.
"Because they are spraying flowers, and bees go to flowers, we can use bees to deliver the control instead."
Dr Hogendoorn explained bees have been used in Europe to help control disease in strawberries, but the South Australian trial was the first of its kind for cherry orchards.
"We call it flying doctors," she said.
"We mount a dispenser in front of the hive. The grower will come out every morning and sprinkle some spores in the dispenser.
"The bees then take those spores up between their hairs and take them to the flowers."
Dr Hogendoorn said as the spores occur naturally there were environmental as well as economical benefits for growers.
"Because the bees deliver the spores directly to the flowers, chemicals would no longer get into surrounding soil or on other areas where it was not needed," she said.
"There is no run-off and there is no spray drift so there is no issues with environmental health or human health in this case."