Dr Joe Roberts
Supervisor Details
Research Interests
Dr Joe Roberts is an experienced researcher passionate about improving our understanding of plant-insect interactions and developing sustainable crop protection solutions. With a diverse portfolio that spans from studying insect behaviour to utilising artificial intelligence for crop pest monitoring, Dr Roberts is dedicated to reducing synthetic insecticides and promoting integrated pest management practices on farms.
At the forefront of innovative research, Dr Roberts has implemented advanced metrics to quantify insecticide use and ensure compatibility with sustainable agriculture practices. His work aligns with the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goal 2, which aims to end hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition, and promote sustainable agriculture.
Dr Roberts is committed to advancing our knowledge of plant-insect interactions and finding innovative ways to protect our crops while preserving the environment.
Involved with these other projects (as researcher)
Scientific Inspiration
Sir Humphrey Davy – he was a true pioneer who discovered a number of elements and invented the sub-field of electrochemistry. In addition to this, Sir Humphrey also invented the Davy lamp that saved countless miner’s lives. As a Cornishman it makes me proud to have such an important scientist from the county.
Project Details
Dr Roberts is the primary supervisor on the below project:
Exploiting plant essential oils in integrated pest management
Secondary Supervisor(s): Dr John Reade, Dr Ben Clunie, Dr Tom Pope
University of Registration: Harper Adams University
BBSRC Research Themes: Sustainable Agriculture and Food (Plant and Crop Science)
No longer accepting applications
Project Outline
Conventional agricultural production systems rely on intensive synthetic inputs to attain maximal yields, particularly with respect to protection against pests (i.e., pesticide use) and nutrient provision (i.e., fertiliser use).1 Modern production systems increasingly demand alternatives to conventional synthetic inputs due to legislative changes, target resistance to active ingredients and concern surrounding their impact on environmental and human health.2-4 These factors have all contributed to the withdrawal of several key active ingredients (e.g., clothianidin, thiamethoxam and imidacloprid) from commercial sale and widespread acceptance that crop protection practices must become more sustainable. Finding effective alternatives to synthetic inputs is, therefore, vital to meet sustainability demands while also ensuring food security and profitable harvests.
Biopesticides are plant protection products derived from natural sources, such as plants and fungi, that offer one such alternative to synthetic chemical pesticides. Plant essential oils have gained attention as biopesticides for managing insect pests and weeds in agriculture as they are generally considered ‘sustainable’ with fewer impacts on non-target organisms and little environmental persistence.5 Essential oils are complex mixtures of low-molecular-weight, highly volatile compounds derived from various plant parts (e.g., leaves, seeds, bark and roots). Their insecticidal and herbicidal properties make them compatible with the integrated pest management principles promoted by European Union and United Kingdom legislation.
Practical use of many essential oil-based biopesticides is, however, often limited by their variable performance under field conditions due to the inconsistent composition of essential oils when extracted from plant material and a requirement for frequent re-application due to their high-volatility that makes them prohibitively costly.5 Such issues may be overcome by using novel formulation technologies that provide protection against abiotic factors (e.g., precipitation or ultra-violet light) and provide a controlled release of any active ingredients.6 Utilising new formulation techniques would then unlock the full potential of plant essential oils as a sustainable alternative to synthetic chemical pesticides. This project ultimately seeks to identify novel plant essential oils that could be developed into biopesticides for managing both invertebrate and weed pests in UK arable cropping systems while also evaluating formulation techniques to improve their efficacy.
References
1Savary et al. (2019) Nature Ecology and Evolution 3:430-439; 2Sparks and Nauen (2015) Pesticide Biochemistry and Physiology 121:122-128; 3Fantke et al. (2012) Environment International 49:9-17; 4Ollerton et al. (2014) Science 346: 1360-1362; 5Kim et al. (2021). Journal of Pest Science 94:1197-1208; 6Milicevic et al. (2022) Agriculture 12:338.
Techniques
- Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to qualitatively and quantitatively identify the chemical composition of plant essential oils;
- Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to quantify the release rate of formulated plant essential oils;
- Insect assays to determine behavioural responses and mortality rates when exposed to unformulated and formulated plant essential oils;
- Weed assays to determine phytotoxicity of plant essential oils using ImageJ;
- Insect culturing techniques;
- Biopesticide application techniques (ULV, knapsack, etc.).
Dr Roberts also is co-supervisor on one project with Dr Simon Jeffery and with two projects with Dr Alex Watson-Lazowski.
Previous Projects
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