Citrus Industry Seeks To Maintain Funding, Eyes Research
Despite a predicted drop in citrus production across Florida, orange juice sales are tracking up and the industry wants lawmakers to maintain current amounts of state marketing and research funding next fiscal year.
Probing Plant Infections
Sometimes the pathogens that infect plants also affect people—through our pocketbooks. Which is why plant pathologist Erica Goss, a University of Florida professor with the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, spends a lot of time studying microbes that infect tomatoes, peppers and strawberries.
Scientists Zero In on How Termites Coordinate Mating Behavior for Colony Success
By utilizing two of the most invasive termite species in Florida, scientists have gained insights into how animals living in groups—termites particularly—coordinate their leader-follower behaviors to thrive.
Scientists Find New Watermelon Viruses in Florida; Help Available
Florida watermelon growers, the most productive in the nation, face two new viruses. But finding a disease is the first step to managing it, says a University of Florida scientist who helped pinpoint the diseases.
Researchers To Study Using Microbes To Combat Citrus Canker
University of Florida researchers hope to use tiny microbes already in Florida citrus groves to fight the citrus canker.
UF/IFAS, FAMU Win $1.4 Million Grant To Teach AI to More Diverse Students
Funding for student fellowships is included in a new $1.4 million, three-year National Science Foundation grant that faculty from the University of Florida and Florida A&M University (FAMU) will use to train a diverse workforce for potential careers in artificial intelligence.
NSF Center To Advance Phosphorus Sustainability Includes Florida Scientists
Two University of Florida scientists have joined a national research effort to promote phosphorus sustainability across the United States. Together they will work under the funding auspices of the National Science Foundation-Science and Technology Center (NSF-STC) in the newly established Science and Technologies for Phosphorus Sustainability (STEPS).
UF Scientist Works on Improving Tomato Production, Size
Florida growers produced 606 million pounds of fresh-market tomatoes last year, which brought in $463 million in revenue. But with competition from places like Mexico, farmers are always looking for an edge – to grow more and bigger fruit. That’s why University of Florida scientist Tong Geon Lee spends countless hours in his lab and fields looking for the right combination of genes to expand the size of individual tomatoes and to help growers increase their yields.
UF Cattle Scientists Use AI To Improve Quality and Quantity of Meat, Dairy
For a century, researchers have tracked genetic traits to find out which cattle produce more and better milk and meat. Now, two University of Florida scientists will use artificial intelligence to analyze millions of bits of genetic data to try to keep cattle cooler and thus, more productive.
UF Scientists Use AI To Try to More Accurately Predict Citrus Yield
University of Florida researchers are using artificial intelligence to help citrus growers better forecast their seasonal production. So far, they’ve found in a preliminary study that their technology predicts yields with 98 percent accuracy.
