Unraveling the black knot problem – scourge of cherry trees
April 22, 2010 by admin
It’s not hard to spot a tree infected with black knot. The thick, black irregular swelling on branches and twigs indicate a victim of Dibotryon morbosum, a fungal germ that destroys cherry, plum, apricot and even almond trees throughout North America.
In the streets and gardens of their home town of Summerside, PEI, Scott Dewar and Mark Townsend saw many ornamental cherry trees that carried the telltale galls, but also some that were free of the infection.
Both 17-year-old Grade 12 students at Three Oaks High School, Scott and Mark hypothesized that comparing the chemical composition of bark taken from a resistant tree to that from a susceptible tree might turn up some important differences that could explain the trees’ different fates.
Working with Dr. Junzeng Zhang, a research officer with the Natural Research Council Institute of Nutrisciences and Health, and using nuclear magnetic resonance analysis, Scott and Mark determined that the two trees did in fact have different chemical spectra.
“We weren’t able to isolate the compounds that were responsible for the difference,” said Scott, “but that is something we would like to continue investigating because they could be a new anti-fungal agent. With further research and development in this area, there is the potential to eventually develop a new anti-fungal product for use in agriculture and the forest industry.”
Scott and Mark both plan to study biology and engineering next year at Dalhousie University in Halifax.
