Banana Poka [Passiflora tarminiana Coppens & Barney, sp.nov. (formerly P. mollissima)].  Personnel of the Plant Pathology Unit and the DLNR’s Maui forester collaborated on two augmentation releases of the banana poka biocontrol pathogen Septoria passiflorae on Maui. The first release was made in the Kula Forest Reserve and the other at Poli Poli State Park. In order to obtain a culture of S. passiflorae, infected material was collected from roadside banana poka and sent to the Plant Pathogen Quarantine Facility (PPQF) in Honolulu, where the fungus was isolated. The Septoria isolate was then tested for   pathogenicity. For each release, 200 culture plates were prepared in the PPQF and taken to the Kahului Biocontrol Lab for preparation. The inoculating procedure called for a solution of 2 percent sucrose and 0.5 percent gelatin with Septoria fungus spores at a concentration of 1 x 10 6 spores per ml. This solution gives the fungal spores a boost in the germination and the infection process. Approximately 5 gallons of spore solution was prepared and sprayed on each occasion.

The Kula site was a follow-up release because the effects of previous fungal releases had diminished as a result of dry weather conditions that plagued the area for several years. During recent surveys of forests on Maui, new banana poka infestation sites have been identified, including the one at Poli Poli. The fungus had apparently not reached these sites because its dispersal requires wind and rain, which typically flow up the mountain from the plains below. Infestations that are laterally adjacent to the infected sites have remained free of the disease. Several months after the fungus was sprayed at Poli Poli, the disease was observed at that site and in the adjacent down-wind areas as well. This project has shown that some fungi may require a little manipulation to expand their range to be more effective in their role as biocontrol agents.