The University of Pretoria conferred 14 postgraduate degrees – eight PhD degrees and six MSc degrees – to FABI ans during the Spring Graduation Ceremony on 5 September. Congratulations to these FABIans on their remarkable achievements! PhD Dr Chrizelle Beukes Thesis: Genomic diversity and phylogeography of South African rhizobia. Supervisor: Prof ET Steenkamp Co-supervisors: Prof SN Venter , Prof TM Stepkowski (Warsaw University of Life Sciences), Dr MM le Roux (South African National Biodiversity Institute) Dr Arista Fourie Thesis: A genomic approach towards understanding host specificity and pathogenicity in two Ceratocystis species. Supervisor: Dr I Barnes Co-supervisors: Prof BD Wingfield , Prof MJ Wingfield , Dr MA van der Nest Dr Zander Human Thesis: The microbial ecology of Protea repens (Proteaceae) infructescences and the surrounding environment. Supervisor: Prof ZW de Beer Co-supervisors: Prof SN Venter , Prof MJ Wingfield Dr Inosters Nzuki Thesis: QTL mapping for pest and disease resistance in cassava varieties Kiroba and AR37-80 and coincidence of QTLs with introgression regions from Manihot glaziovii . Supervisor: Prof AA Myburg Co-supervisors: Dr NA van der Merwe , Dr ME Ferguson (International Institute for Tropical Agriculture, Kenya) Dr Caryn Oates Thesis: Eucalyptus morphological and molecular responses to Leptocybe invasa oviposition. Supervisor: Prof S Naidoo Co-supervisors: Prof KJ Denby (University of Warwick, United Kingdom), Prof AA Myburg , Prof B Slippers Dr Danielle Roodt Thesis: The evolution of xylogenesis in vascular plants. Supervisor: Prof E Mizrachi Co-supervisor: Prof YEP van de Peer Dr Quentin Santana Thesis: Population and genomic analyses of the pitch canker pathogen Fusarium circinatum Nirenberg & O'Donnell. Supervisor: Prof MPA Coetzee Co-Supervisors: Prof ET Steenkamp , Prof BD Wingfield , Prof MJ Wingfield Dr Erik Visser Thesis: Transcriptomic model of resistance mechanisms in the Pinus - Fusarium circinatum interaction. Supervisor: Prof S Naidoo Co-supervisors: Prof AA Myburg , Prof ET Steenkamp , Prof JL Wegrzyn (University of Connecticut, USA) MSc Claudio de Nuzzo Thesis: Endogenous peptide defence in maize against the fall armyworm Spodoptera frugiperda (J.E. Smith). Supervisor: Prof DK Berger Co-supervisor: Prof K Krüger Lichelle Grobler Dissertation: Agrobacterium-mediated CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing in Nicotiana benthamiana . Supervisor: Dr BG Crampton Co-supervisors: Dr MM O'Kennedy (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research), Dr P Pillay (Council for Scientific and Industrial Research). Zanele Mahlangu (with distinction) Dissertation: Seed quality of farm-saved dry bean produced by smallholder farmers in the uThukela district of Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa. Supervisor: Prof TAS Aveling Co-supervisor: Dr Q Kritzinger Dineo Mailula (with distinction) Dissertation: Production of fusel alcohols in the species of the family Ceratocystidaecea. Supervisor: Dr A Hammerbacher Co-supervisors: Prof BD Wingfield , Dr MA van der Nest Zanelle Mufamadi Dissertation: Identification of the causal agents and management of husk rot on macadamia in South Africa. Supervisor: Prof N van den Berg Co-supervisor: Dr G Fourie Pfano Mbedzi Dissertation: Evaluation of simple sequence repeats (SSR) markers associated with resistance to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum (Lib.) de Barry in commercial South African soybean cultivars. Supervisor: Prof BJ Vorster Co-supervisor: Prof JE van der Waals