Coats for plants: keeping pathogens and pests at bay

The leaf surface provides the first barrier that fungi and insects must overcome in order to gain access to the leaf. It also provides a variety of chemical and physical cues that are necessary for the development of infection structures for many fungal pathogens. Leaf surface cues are also important in enabling insects to locate and accept plants as suitable hosts for feeding. Coating the leaf surface, thus hiding these cues, provides a novel way to control pathogens and pests on crops.