Disease Note

Rust (Puccinia haemodori) of Kangaroo Paws in Eastern Australia. C. M. Liddell, Department of Plant Pathology and Agricultural Entomology, University of Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia. G. M. Lawson, Department of Agronomy and Horticultural Science, University of Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia. Plant Dis. 70:475. Accepted for publication 13 December 1985. Copyright 1986 The American Phytopathological Society. DOI: 10.1094/PD-70-475f.

Puccinia haemodori P. Henn. has been recognized as an important pathogen of kangaroo paws (Anigozanthos spp. and Macropidia fuliginosa Hook.) in Western Australia since 1982. In 1984, both urediniospore and teliospore stages of this rust were observed in eastern Australia, where development of kangaroo paws as an ornamental crop for both domestic and export markets is in the fledgling stage. Breeding programs for improved flower and plant quality have been under way in New South Wales and Victoria since 1970, but breeding for rust resistance has just begun there. Both exporters and importing countries should implement quarantine measures to limit the spread of this rust.