is a limiting factor for cotton production in Australia. As a soil-borne fungal pathogen, epidemiological, ecological and genetic features of Fov populations are strongly influenced by soil conditions.

A project investigating the molecular and histological effects of silicon application on cotton infected with Fov was inspired by promising preliminary results obtained by Dr Linda Smith (QPl&F) in glasshouse and

Fusarium wilt of cotton is caused by the soil-borne fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. vasinfectum (Fov).

Fusarium wilt continues to be an important constraint to sustainable cotton production. This project had a number of objectives to obtain data to improve the management of this disease.

Fusarium oxysporum f.sp. vasinfectum (Fov) was first identified in Australia in 1993, and as

since become one of the most significant threats to the country's thriving cotton industry. The