(credit: By Petr Pakandl - Own work, CC BY-SA 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1176962) In southern Italy, a plant pathogen called Xylella fastidiosa has been ushering in an agricultural, environmental, and political crisis. The infection is affecting olive trees, which are a critical part of Italian culture and heritage. Containment of this epidemic would require cutting down trees to prevent the spread of the disease.