Darryl Herron

Māori: "Ko ia kāhore nei i rapu, tē kitea" Eng: "He who does not seek will not find" How do you protect what you do not know? According to the @kewgardens #SOTWPF bit.ly/3enzo9l report, 40% of our plants are at risk of going extinct. We should be #CollectingOurFuture

Growers are making compromises to try maintain the IPM standard, using cheaper alternative chemicals, doing less monitoring, and so diseases are slowly increasing leading to more crop rejection. How do growers balance production and management, so they don't go out of business?

Numbers talk Something missing at conferences like #nzpps25 are the figures, $ values. Jonathan Dixon talks about AvoGreen IPM for avocado pests. He compiled data from monitoring, spray diaries, orchard costs, and sales data to tell. Management costs ⬆️ while income ⬇️ ...

Stories from an 'elder' member of the society #nzpps25 "Things are not OK". Looking back on the last 5 decades, there's been: ⬇️ in funding ⬇️ in funding length, programmes to projects, 10-15 yrs to 1-3 yrs ⬇️ of capacity ⬇️ of industrial & science knowledge Where's the ⬆️??

Dame Professor Alison Stewart opens #nzpps25 with a talk on the current New Zealand science sector reform. Stewart has a long career as a pathologist in New Zealand seeing many changes in the science sector between 1984 & 2025. Is the change going to be good for science?

It's been awhile... Back at #nzpps25 for a showcase of New Zealand plant pathology science. I'm here with @scion_research colleagues (now under the New Zealand Institute for Bioeconomy Science) to represent forestry science.

Scion has launched NZ’s first field trial of gene-edited #conifers using CRISPR technology! We’re testing how gene editing can boost #timber quality & create high-value bioproducts for a low-emissions #bioeconomy. 🔗 Full release: lnkd.in/ggANtRiE

🇳🇿 Forestry leaders & biosecurity specialists visited the Basque country, Spain to witness the 'frontline' of a serious pine needle disease, Lecanosticta. Nothing like seeing the devastation in-person vs the many reports and papers on the pathogen. @scion_research #biosecurity

Angus Carnegie opens the NZ Biosecurity Conference 2025 with this: "Declining capacity in Forest Health expertise." Attributed to: Change in forest ownership Attrition Restructures Industry hires Changing research focus (genetics to climate change) @UCNZ @scion_research

🚨 #job 🚨: The Department of Forest Ecology and Management at the Faculty of Forest Sciences, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), is hiring a full-tenure Professor in silviculture with a focus on silvicultural systems, mainly in boreal forests. A silvicultural system is a planned program of treatments throughout the entire life of a forest stand, designed for influencing the growth of trees and their spatial and temporal distribution to achieve predictable characteristics that align with stand specific economic, ecological and social objectives. 🗺️Location: Umeå, Sweden 📅Deadline: 29 April 2025 ➡️slu.se/en/about-slu/w… #ForestScience #ForestResearch #ForestEcology #Silviculture #SustainableForestry #SLU #Sweden

Corrections

Standing room only! Members of the New Zealand Forest Nursery Growers Association came to visit @scion_research nursery. Our researchers gave talks to an engaged audience on nursery practices in Canada, terminal crook disease, and propagation with tissue culture. #growingideas

Does science make you rich? No. Is there good work-life balance? No. But at least it’s easy, right? Also no

The APPS is committed to suporting students and ECRs. With our partners Atlas of Living Australia, The Crawford Fund, and the Australasian Mycology Society we have further bursaries on offer to attend the upcoming Biennial conference. Closing 28 March apps2025.org/apps-bursary-s…

Specimens of Cortinarius 🍄 older than 50 yrs (collected in 1975) are difficult to sequence using short DNA barcodes with Sanger sequencing. The DNA is 👵🏼 Metabarcoding & whole genome sequencing could identify other barcodes to improve DNA identification of older specimens.

Spending an evening with the Botanical Society of Otago talking 🍄 We are discussing the importance of DNA to identify specimens. As taxonomy predates the use of DNA, sequencing old type specimens ensure we accurately place these specimens in the tree of life. @otago

This morning on 𝘉𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘬𝘧𝘢𝘴𝘵, US Forest Service Research Forester Mark Finney shared how controlled burns in Canterbury are yielding key insights for wildfire response. Watch the full interview to see how Scion’s 20+ year partnerships are advancing wildfire risk management and boosting forest resilience globally. #WildfireResearch #ForestResilience #FireScience #ScionResearch @usembassynz @forestservice @MBIEgovtnz

Did you miss our global webinar event celebrating #WomeninSTEM? 👩‍🔬🌲🌳🌴 We got you covered! Find the recorded sessions on our YouTube Channel 👇👀 youtube.com/watch?v=aDnvgw… #foresthealth #entomology #pathology #climatechange

New Zealand relies on forestry for commercial value, biodiversity, human and ecosystem health. @scion_research as a science organisation is involved in the large global network supporting forest research @IUFRO

Spending an afternoon with Prof Daniela Kleinschmidt, @IUFRO president. Planting trees is not going to mitigate or slow climate change. Not alone. Trees are just part of a larger cross sectoral approach needed. For trees to be impactful, better governance is needed.

🗞️ February Science Recap 🌱 #GeneTechnology Bill – Scion backs the Gene Tech Bill to drive innovation and productivity. Hear from Dr. Alec Foster and dive into our submission. 🌳 Branching Out Podcast – Discover the history of #indigenousforestry with Ki-Taurangi Bradford and Greg Steward in Episode 3. 🔬 Expert Spotlight – Meet Dr. Hayden Thomas, the lead behind Scion’s #NuclearMagneticResonance (NMR) suite. 🌿 Te Rātā Whakamaru – The three-year project tackling #myrtlerust in the Bay of Plenty wraps up. 🔥 Experimental Burns – Scion’s #fireresearch burns near Christchurch from March 3-14 aim to enhance readiness and public safety. 🔗 Full stories: lnkd.in/gB3rH4nF