Resistance

The EPIDEMIX thesis project explores one of the cornerstones of the agroecological transition: crop mixtures. By combining different plant species within a single plot, this project aims to understand how diversity can naturally curb disease while boosting yields.

This thesis addresses a critical challenge for Caribbean agriculture: ensuring the long-term sustainability of banana production while drastically reducing pesticide use.

The CESON project is venturing into an emerging field of science: the ability of plants to perceive and respond to acoustic signals. This interdisciplinary project aims to lay the methodological groundwork for evaluating the effectiveness of sound waves as a means of protecting crops against pests.

The C3PO project is an interdisciplinary research initiative launched in 2026. Its goal is to unravel the complex interactions between climate change and winter rapeseed’s susceptibility to its two main biological enemies: Phoma and clubroot.

The cultivation of genetically resistant plants is an environmentally-friendly and effective means of controlling pathogen populations. However, pathogens can quickly overcome plant resistance.

Genetic resistances are an indispensable resource and a key lever in the successful transition to an agriculture less dependent on chemical protection. The management of these resources in local areas remains imperfect due to a lack of information, preconceived ideas, and controversy (cf. Lannou et al, 2020; SuMCrop 2022 transdisciplinary resistance seminar). To make resistance a lever for sustainable disease management, it is necessary to establish a transdisciplinary dialogue with stakeholders in farming areas and supply chains.

Soil, plants, and pathogenic or beneficial microorganisms form dynamic associations in permanent interactions, influencing each other, with multiple consequences on access to nutrients and life cycles. Rhizodeposits directly influence both rhizospheric microbial composition and plant development, which are important determinants of plant susceptibility to biotic and abiotic stresses.