Ensuring resilient, high-quality and safe fruit production requires new approaches to manage the increasing pressure of diseases in orchard systems while reducing environmental impacts. Fruit trees are strategic crops for food security, nutritional quality and rural economies, but their long production cycles and high phytosanitary vulnerability call for timely, accurate and non-destructive monitoring tools. In this context, vegetation spectroscopy represents a promising solution, as it enables rapid and cost-effective assessment of plant health status across multiple spatial scales. However, its application to fruit tree pathology and sustainable crop protection remains underexplored. The research aims to: (1) design and develop a multiscale protocol for hyperspectral data acquisition, from leaf to canopy, UAV and satellite levels, under both field and controlled conditions, in order to build a comprehensive dataset of spectral signatures associated with diseases affecting fruit trees; (2) develop spectral indices, predictive models and classification tools for the early detection and monitoring of disease incidence, severity and plant physiological responses; and (3) support the development of sustainable crop protection strategies by integrating hyperspectral information into decision-support approaches for targeted, timely and reduced-input interventions, consistent with integrated pest management principles.
The candidate will be required to develop a distinctive set of skills, including the ability to analyse both conventional data (e.g., ecophysiological measurements) and high-dimensional datasets (e.g. hyperspectral and multivariate data), to improve the monitoring of plants under biotic and abiotic stress. The ideal candidate should be highly motivated to carry out research at an advanced level. Previous experience in standard Plant Pathology approaches, and a sound background in plant sciences, is considered essential. Candidates holding a degree in Agricultural Sciences or a related discipline will be preferred. Good communication skills in both Italian and English are also required.
Led by Prof. Cristina Nali, the Plant Pathology Lab at the University of Pisa, includes two Associate Professors, two Researchers, five PhD students, and six technicians. The group’s main research interests focus on vegetation spectroscopy, hyperspectral phenotyping of plant stress, and the physio-chemical responses of plants to biotic and abiotic stresses. The research environment includes greenhouses, ozone-exposure facilities and advanced controlled-environment platforms. The group also benefits from a wide range of field and laboratory instrumentation for morpho-physiological and biochemical analyses (e.g., photosynthesis systems, Chl a fluorometers, HPLC, GC-MS, and microbiology tools).