Biology and Integrated Management of Pathogens of Forest Diseases

Dear Colleagues,

A forest (natural or artificial) is a complex ecosystem with diverse life forms and interactions, mainly characterized by a dense community of trees that play vital roles such as producing oxygen, filtering air and water, regulating the climate, and supporting biodiversity. Due to climate change, international trade, forest management practices, other human activities, and antimicrobial resistance, forest trees are increasingly threatened by emerging infectious diseases, primarily caused by fungi, bacteria, viruses, and nematodes. In comparison with annual crops, controlling emerging pathogens in trees is particularly difficult. Given that tree longevity varies from decades to millennia, effective control strategies must persist across multiple life stages rather than targeting a growing season.

The identification and characterization of novel pathogens, along with rapid and reliable diagnosis using modern tools or methods, are essential. Equally important is a better understanding of pathogen distribution within host plants, modes of transmission, epidemiology, host preferences, and interactions with host plants or other microorganisms. Together, these efforts can help address current knowledge gaps. Still, there remains a pressing need for integrated control strategies to prevent future disease outbreaks in forests. These strategies may include the deployment of locally adapted and resistant tree species, the selection of healthy propagation materials, chemical control (particularly in nurseries), biological control, and other alternative approaches. We therefore welcome research articles, reviews, short communications, and opinion pieces focusing on the biology and integrated management of forest pathogens for our current Special Issue, “Biology and Integrated Management of Pathogens of Forest Diseases”.

Potential topics include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Pathogen diagnosis and identification;
• Pathogen–host interactions;
• Disease prevention and control. 

Dr. Zhengnan Li
Dr. Peiqin Li
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Forests is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.