Funding
On this site you can engage with the latest fall armyworm (FAW) research, development and extension (R, D & E) activities for horticulture:
To receive updates on information added to this page, register on this eHub and 'follow' the fall armyworm project.
This eHub page is delivered as part of the Hort Innovation funded project VG22006 'National Fall Armyworm (FAW) innovation system for the Australian vegetable industry'.
Stay up to date with fall armyworm (FAW) research, development, and extension activities across FAW area-wide management regions.
The national FAW extension project (VG22006) is establishing area-wide management groups in the Bowen / Burdekin (North Queensland), Lockyer Valley (South East Queensland) and East Gippsland (Victoria) regions. In each region, researchers and extension officers are working with growers, agronomists, and industry participants to generate knowledge and tools for sustainable FAW management through a range of activities. Here are the activities currently underway. For questions or feedback, click on the contact name to email the researcher or extension officer or use the 'Questions and Information Request' tab at the top right corner of the FAW eHub.
Lockyer Valley, South East Queensland (2024-2025)
East Gippsland, Victoria (2024-2025)
Stay up to date with activities across all FAW area-wide management regions through the FAW eHub and newsletter (Ramesh Puri).
(Image credit: location pins designed by rawpixel.com / Freepik)
Stay up to date with fall armyworm (FAW) research activities across Australia. Various organisations are working on FAW management solutions including biological control, companion planting, and crop and pest monitoring.
Below are some of the activities currently underway. For questions or feedback, click on the contact’s name to email the researcher or use the 'Questions and Information Request' tab at the top right corner of this page.
Department of Primary Industries, Queensland (2024-25):
Macquarie University
In response to industry concerns over fall armyworm (FAW), Agriculture Victoria brought together 17 agronomists from Victoria’s grains, dairy fodder and horticulture sectors for a workshop in Tatura on 23 October. The event was supported by the National fall armyworm innovation system for the Australian vegetable industry (VG22006) project, National Vegetable Extension Network (VegNET) and the Maize Association of Australia, and provided up-to-date knowledge on FAW management for local growers
On 18 September, eighteen agronomists and researchers from the horticulture, grain, and cane industries met at the Department of Agriculture & Fisheries (DAF) facility in Bowen to discuss sustainable area-wide management (AWM) of fall armyworm (FAW) in the Bowen-Burdekin region. The meeting addressed key topics, including biological control, insecticide resistance, management strategies, and FAW monitoring using pheromone traps and real-time data collection tools.
On 12 September 2024, twenty participants, including growers, agronomists, extension workers, and researchers gathered at the Department of Agriculture and Fisheries' (DAF) Gatton Research Facility to discuss fall armyworm (FAW) in the Lockyer Valley. The meeting was conducted as part of the project VG22006 National fall armyworm innovation system for the Australian vegetable Industry.
Over the last two years, fall armyworm (FAW) has become a potential pest in Victoria for current and future climates, with impacts on corn and maize crop production along with risks to many other grains and horticultural crops.
Our extension officer Dr Ramesh Puri is working on a new national program delivered through Hort Innovation to reduce the impact of fall armyworm on the vegetable industry. Ramesh’s career in agriculture has taken him from Nepal to Japan to Victoria Australia. In early 2022, Ramesh moved to Queensland with his wife and two children and joined our team in Bowen.
In the absence of accurate damage or economic thresholds, the following points should be considered when monitoring fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) on sweet corn and maize crops in Australia. 1. Female moths lay eggs in masses, around 50 to 200 eggs in a mass, on all stages of sweet corn and maize. Monitoring needs to begin as soon as the shoots emerge and continue at least every week until harvest. Eggs can be found on the upper and lower leaf surfaces, on stems and husk.
Updated: 03 December, 2024
Average pheromone trap catches decreased to 84 moths (count per trap per week) (26th November to 3rd December 2024).
Updated: 15 November, 2024
Various peak values have been recorded, with most occurring during the warm weather season. Since the initiation of the trapping program, the highest number of male moths collected on traps was reported between January and February 2024.
Updated: 1 May 2024
The highest moth catches were observed in March and April 2024, likely due to warmer weather and the primary growing season for host crops, which encouraged increased pest presence.
The videos are from Fall armyworm events and field activities.