Shield the Young Harvest from Devouring Blight– Charles Darwin, Joseph Banks, Thomas Knight and wheat rust: discovery, adventure and 'Getting Our Message Out'

Abstract

1969: the year of the first moon landing (20 July), the Woodstock Festival in upstate New York (15–18 August), and, (coinciding with the last day of Woodstock!), the beginning of the Australasian Plant Pathology Society [first annual general meeting at the 41st Australian and New Zealand Association for the Advancement of Science meeting, Adelaide (18 August) (Purss 1994)]. All had a lengthy gestation and challenges along the way. All have changed the world! In the 17th President’s Address to the Australasian Plant Pathology Society, David Guest (2001), noted: ‘I became a plant pathologist because the mechanisms organisms use to communicate fascinate me’. Well, I became a plant pathologist because I am a gardener at heart. But I have learned along the way that communication is a critical issue — not only the communication among and between microorganisms and plants, but also that between plant pathologists, farmers, politicians and communities. And, communication that is timely, inspiring and, (preferably) accurate, often yields the most favourable outcomes. In this paper, I will explore some of the early communication relating to plant disease, particularly wheat rusts. I refer to Erasmus and Charles Darwin, Joseph Banks, Thomas Knight, and some pioneering Australian researchers, and the roles of conferences, publications and newspapers, to highlight how ‘getting our message out’ was as important in the 19th and early 20th centuries as it is now. And, finally, I will consider how a scientific society in the 21st century still has relevance and the potential to change the world.