A NEW research program is aiming to determine how long the virus that crippled the Northern Territory’s $63 million watermelon industry can survive in local soils.
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After cucumber green mottle mosaic virus was initially discovered on a watermelon farm near Katherine in 2014, impacted producers had to burn and bury their crops as strict biosecurity measures were implemented.
Twenty-five properties – including 18 in the Katherine region – have been infected with CGMMV.
Primary Industry and Fisheries Minister Willem Westra van Holthe announced on August 31 that the $426,000 program would help to determine when a growing ban could be lifted.
Soil will be tested at sites in Katherine, Ti Tree and Lambells Lagoon.
The soil samples will be collected and divided into two parts – one for DNA assessment and the other for a host plant to be grown in, in order to determine the lifespan of CGMMV in region-specific soils.
