Plant Protection (PLNT3009)

Course overview

Advanced biology & diagnostics of major pest groups. Pest monitoring including pest & crop sampling & evaluation; development, implementation & analysis of pest management information, professional services, duty of care and ethics.

Plant Protection provides students with practical skills for sustainable agriculture. While many courses are largely theoretical, Plant Protection equips students with first-hand expertise in crop monitoring, pest and disease identification, crop management and reporting. These skills are directly applicable to future careers in agronomy, plant protection and biosecurity. Students who successfully complete this course will have the confidence to go to any crop anywhere, and at least commence if not conclude the process of pest/disease identification and management. Being a practically-focused course, students will prepare professional presentations detailing their own experimental activities.ﾠ

Plant Protection is an advanced study course, building on the information and tools developed in PLNT2011, Plant and Environmental Health. In this course you will deal with higher-level studies of the fields of plant pathology, entomology, molecular biology, weed science and Integrated Crop Management (ICM). You will more closely study aspects of advanced ecology which will help you understand the behaviour and dynamics of pest populations in the field.

You will develop higher-level diagnostic skills which will enable you to more accurately identify the nature of pests and diseases found in the field. This will include introductory molecular biology, with which you will identify pathogens and/or pests. You will also investigate a range of control measures which are relevant to crop protection in specific cropping systems. A more detailed understanding of the effects of dynamics of pathogens and pests on crop productivity and the development of threshold levels for action will be developed.

A key element of this course is the field-based clinical service exercise, in which you will apply professional crop protection advisory practice and skills in a selected production system. This is usually a very successful exercise, which will help you sharpen your skills and your knowledge in the field of crop protection while also enhancing your communications, professional and personal skills. This exercise is unusual in that it requires you to draw together and use your full range of knowledge, skills, and professional attributes in the framework of a situation of commercial reality.

It is important when studying Plant Protection to realise that although damage is caused to crops and stored products by different groups of pests (e.g. weeds, insects,ﾠpathogens and rodents), the basic biological patterns of these groups show similar patterns and their types of damage often overlap. Quite often, similar approaches are used to manage most of the different groups of pests. This is why this course is taught as Plant Protection rather than as separate courses such as Weed Science, Entomology, Plant Pathology and aspects of Agronomy. Plant Protection is an integrating course.

The School of Agriculture and Food Sustainability (AGFS) and other parts of UQ have staff who specialise in plant pathology, entomology, weed science and pesticide science. The Plant Protection course offered in this program gives us the chance to interact with you both through the field visit and clinical laboratory program. We look forward to the opportunity to work with you in this course.

I hope you will find this a most engaging and interesting course.

At the School of Agriculture and Food Sustainability, we are committed to creating an inclusive and empowering learning environment for all students. We value and respect the diverse range of experiences our students bring to their education, and we believe that this diversity is crucial for fostering a rich culture of knowledge-sharing and meaningful exploration. We hold students and staff accountable for actively contributing to establishing a respectful and supportive learning environment.

Bullying, harassment, and discrimination in any form are strictly against our principles and against ﾠUQ Policy,ﾠ and will not be tolerated. If you have any concerns about your experience in this course, we encourage you to tell a member of the course teaching team. Your well-being and a positive learning atmosphere are of utmost importance to us.

Course requirements

Assumed background

It is strongly recommended that students enrolling in this course have previously completed studies in PLNT2011 (Plant and EnvironmentalﾠHealth),ﾠor have conducted similar studies in which a firm background in entomology, weed science, plant pathology and introductory integrated pest management (IPM) has been developed.

Recommended prerequisites

We recommend completing the following courses before enrolling in this one:

PLNT2011

Incompatible

You can't enrol in this course if you've already completed the following:

PLNT7005 (co-taught)

Jointly taught details

This course is jointly-taught with:

Plant pathogen isolations, field trip(s) and field monitoring.

Course contact

Course staff

Timetable

The timetable for this course is available on the UQ Public Timetable.

Additional timetable information

This course is delivered on-campus at Gatton only. The delivery mode is a single six hour clinical laboratory setting in which student projects and laboratory skills are taught in a collaborative setting. This session is timed to allow students from St Lucia to arrive by the free intercampus bus, and be able to catch the return bus at the end of class. Some field trips and field work conducted in the student's own time are also included in this course.

This course is a co-taught course with PLNT7005. There will be a shared Blackboard site for PLNT3009 and PLNT7005.ﾠ

Aims and outcomes

Plant Protection is a two-unit course of one semester’s duration. This course is designed to allow students to develop a higher level of understanding of the specific biology of the various pest groups with an emphasis on their diagnostics. Clinical approaches to ICM (Integrated Crop Management) based upon the skills, methodology and approaches to crop monitoring, diagnostic skills, pest data interpretation and interaction with clients will also be dealt with in this course. This course is taught as a clinical session which incorporates lectures, practical skills, field work and assignment work all done in a supported environment.

Learning outcomes

After successfully completing this course you should be able to:

Assessment

Assessment summary

Assessment details

Behaviour Impact

• Online

Mode

Activity/ Performance, Oral, Product/ Artefact/ Multimedia, Written

Category

Creative Production/ Exhibition, Presentation, Product/ Design, Project

Weight

20%

Due date

5/09/2025 2:00 pm

Other conditions

Peer assessment factor, Work integrated learning.

See the conditions definitions

Learning outcomes

L01, L04

Task description

Submission guidelines

You must submit your Assessment task, in Blackboard, via the Turnitin link by the submission deadline. You should also retain an electronic copy of every piece of assessment you submit. Legal Declaration: By submitting your work via this website, you formally declare that:

(1) it is your own original work, and no part of the work has been copied from any other source or person except where due acknowledgement is made;

(2) no part of the work has been previously submitted for assessment in this or any other institution; and

(3) you have read the UQ Academic Integrity and Plagiarism Policy (http://ppl.app.uq.edu.au/content/3.60.04-student-integrity-and-misconduct) and understand its implications.

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

Submission of an Extension of Assessment Due Date (EADD) should be completed online through your My Requests tab via my.UQ Dashboard, in accordance with the University's Assessment Procedure (located in the Policies and Procedures section of this course profile) which outlines the requirements for requesting extensions to assessment due dates. Extensions require the correct evidence/documentation to support the requested length of time of the extension.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

For example, a report worth a maximum of 40 marks, submitted 28 hours late will attract a penalty of 8 marks, calculated as 2 periods of 24 hours x 10% x 40 marks.

Assessment deadlines are firm and must be met. Late submission without permission or non-submission of assessable work will result in penalties being applied. Late submission of assessment will only be granted for documented medical reasons, accident, bereavement, jury service and other circumstances allowed in the UQ Policies and Procedures Library (PPL).

Plant disease project - characterising micro-organisms

Mode

Written

Category

Creative Production/ Exhibition, Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Essay/ Critique, Practical/ Demonstration, Project

Weight

25%

Due date

10/10/2025 2:00 pm

Other conditions

Work integrated learning.

See the conditions definitions

Learning outcomes

L01, L03, L04, L05

Task description

Submission guidelines

You must submit your Assessment task, in Blackboard, via the Turnitin link by the submission deadline. You should also retain an electronic copy of every piece of assessment you submit. Legal Declaration: By submitting your work via this website, you formally declare that:

(1) it is your own original work, and no part of the work has been copied from any other source or person except where due acknowledgement is made;

(2) no part of the work has been previously submitted for assessment in this or any other institution; and

(3) you have read the UQ Academic Integrity and Plagiarism Policy (http://ppl.app.uq.edu.au/content/3.60.04-student-integrity-and-misconduct) and understand its implications.

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

Submission of an Extension of Assessment Due Date (EADD) should be completed online through your My Requests tab via my.UQ Dashboard, in accordance with the University's Assessment Procedure (located in the Policies and Procedures section of this course profile) which outlines the requirements for requesting extensions to assessment due dates. Extensions require the correct evidence/documentation to support the requested length of time of the extension.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

For example, a report worth a maximum of 40 marks, submitted 28 hours late will attract a penalty of 8 marks, calculated as 2 periods of 24 hours x 10% x 40 marks.

Assessment deadlines are firm and must be met. Late submission without permission or non-submission of assessable work will result in penalties being applied. Late submission of assessment will only be granted for documented medical reasons, accident, bereavement, jury service and other circumstances allowed in the UQ Policies and Procedures Library (PPL).

Field Monitoring

Mode

Written

Category

Paper/ Report/ Annotation, Notebook/ Logbook, Placement, Practical/ Demonstration, Project

Weight

25%

Due date

31/10/2025 2:00 pm

Other conditions

Work integrated learning.

See the conditions definitions

Learning outcomes

L02, L03, L04, L05

Task description

Submission guidelines

You must submit your Assessment task, in Blackboard, via the Turnitin link by the submission deadline. You should also retain an electronic copy of every piece of assessment you submit. Legal Declaration: By submitting your work via this website, you formally declare that:

(1) it is your own original work, and no part of the work has been copied from any other source or person except where due acknowledgement is made;

(2) no part of the work has been previously submitted for assessment in this or any other institution; and

(3) you have read the UQ Academic Integrity and Plagiarism Policy (http://ppl.app.uq.edu.au/content/3.60.04-student-integrity-and-misconduct) and understand its implications.

Deferral or extension

You may be able to apply for an extension.

Submission of an Extension of Assessment Due Date (EADD) should be completed online through your My Requests tab via my.UQ Dashboard, in accordance with the University's Assessment Procedure (located in the Policies and Procedures section of this course profile) which outlines the requirements for requesting extensions to assessment due dates. Extensions require the correct evidence/documentation to support the requested length of time of the extension.

Late submission

A penalty of 10% of the maximum possible mark will be deducted per 24 hours from time submission is due for up to 7 days. After 7 days, you will receive a mark of 0.

For example, a report worth a maximum of 40 marks, submitted 28 hours late will attract a penalty of 8 marks, calculated as 2 periods of 24 hours x 10% x 40 marks.

Assessment deadlines are firm and must be met. Late submission without permission or non-submission of assessable work will result in penalties being applied. Late submission of assessment will only be granted for documented medical reasons, accident, bereavement, jury service and other circumstances allowed in the UQ Policies and Procedures Library (PPL).

Final exam

• Identity Verified
• In-person

Mode

Written

Category

Examination

Weight

30%

Due date

End of Semester Exam Period

8/11/2025 - 22/11/2025

Learning outcomes

L01, L02, L03, L04

Task description

Exam details

Submission guidelines

Deferral or extension

You may be able to defer this exam.

Course grading

Full criteria for each grade is available in the Assessment Procedure.

Supplementary assessment

Supplementary assessment is available for this course.

Additional assessment information

Please note the following when writing your assignments 

You must not re-use past work from previous assessments in your assignments. 

Academic Integrity and Plagiarism

All reported work must be done by the individual student. Assignments that look and sound alike will be reported as plagiarism – a serious offence at UQ. Please note the university’s policy on academic integrity and plagiarism which can be accessed at Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy. 

Turnitin

Assignments that are required to be submitted through Turnitin, must only be uploaded to the assessment specific Turnitin link on the relevant course Blackboard site. If you submit any version of your assessment item to any alternative Turnitin link, this is considered cheating, and you will be held liable for this action.

Results: 

Unless specifically indicated by the lecturer involved, every attempt will be made to have the results for progressive assessment tasks available within 3 weeks of submission. For items of assessment submitted in the last 2 weeks of the semester, the results will be available before the day of your end of semester examination in the course, unless otherwise indicated by the Course Coordinator. Results and feedback availability for progressive assessment will be announced via the course Blackboard site. 

Feedback in this course

Feedback is welcome in this course as any information on how students find this learning experience is constructive.

Please use the evaluation form provided to you at the end of semester - or if you are enrolled internally, a course evaluation process will occur in the last few weeks of semester.

Re-mark Applications

Refer to the University's Re-mark Policy to check your eligibility.

Learning resources

You'll need the following resources to successfully complete the course. We've indicated below if you need a personal copy of the reading materials or your own item.

Library resources

Library resources are available on the UQ Library website.

Other course materials

Additional learning resources information

There are many resources available to budding young plant protectionists. These can be found on the websites of the Australasian Plant Pathology Society, the American Phytopathological Society, and the British Society for Plant Pathology among others. Diseases of Fruit Crops in Australia (Persley and House) and Diseases of Vegetable Crops in Australia (Persely) are great resources. The Plant Protection book series by Ruth Kerruish are key resources for this course. Plant Protection 4 - How to diagnose plant problems is a resource that should be used in the laboratory. The other three volumes may also be useful - all are available as free downloads.

For nematology, please refer to https://www.appsnet.org/nematodes

It will help if you read a diverse array of contemporary material to keep abreast of developments in the field.

Learning activities

The learning activities for this course are outlined below. Learn more about the learning outcomes that apply to this course.

Additional learning activity information

Planned field work and inspections are subject to change based on availability and opportunity. I intend to keep activities dynamic and flexible in line with future workplace expectations.

Policies and procedures

University policies and procedures apply to all aspects of student life. As a UQ student, you must comply with University-wide and program-specific requirements, including the:

• Student Code of Conduct Policy
• Student Integrity and Misconduct Policy and Procedure
• Assessment Procedure
• Examinations Procedure
• Reasonable Adjustments for Students Policy and Procedure

Learn more about UQ policies on my.UQ and the Policy and Procedure Library.

You'll also need to be aware of the following policies and procedures while completing this course:

• Laboratory Occupational Health and Safety