Specifying Irrigation Needs for Container-Grown Plants
A study at the University of Florida’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences examined the efficiency of irrigation schedules used for container-grown plants to determine if they could be improved with specific daily adjustments. Jeff Million and Tom Yeager conducted two experiments to monitor the effect of irrigation schedules on plant growth and water usage. […]
Exotic New Crop Could Put Florida on World Spice Map
Vanilla has an undeserved reputation for being blah, as in plain vanilla, the flavor for people who consider chocolate too daring. The truth is a vanilla bean is an exotic thing — the only edible fruit of the orchid family — and an essential ingredient in a host of everyday favorites. Most natural vanilla comes […]
Inner to Outer Space: Studying Biological Changes With Plants on Rockets
What happens to the genes of organisms as they travel from the ground, through Earth’s atmosphere, and into space? Does their expression change? Are the changes subtle or dramatic? Do they happen quickly or gradually? Answering such fundamental research questions is essential to our understanding of the impact of space travel on humans and other […]
Six UF Researchers Named 2019 AAAS Fellows
Six researchers from across the University of Florida have been named Fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the world’s largest general scientific society. UF’s new Fellows include three UF/IFAS researchers, Senthold Asseng, a professor with the department of agricultural and biological engineering, Karen Garrett, a professor with the plant pathology […]
New Pumpkin, Calabaza Breeds Make Headway at UF
Pumpkin’s popularity for holiday decor, healthy snacking and recipes during fall and winter months, has given rise to innovative research led by Geoffrey Meru, an assistant professor of vegetable breeding, genetics and genomics at the Tropical Research and Education Center of the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences. The goal is to develop varieties of […]
Taller, Higher Soil Bed Design Can Help Save Farmers Thousands of Dollars
From Florida to Virginia, farmers are enjoying the fruits of Sanjay Shukla’s labor. His compact-bed geometry system allows growers to plant crops in tall soil beds, and the result is thousands of dollars in annual savings. New research by Shukla and his team shows that with savings of up to $102,000 per crop annually for […]
Growers, Researchers Seek Citrus Varieties Resistant to Citrus Greening
UF Institute of Food and Agricultural Services hosted citrus growers, packers, processors, gift-fruit shippers, and others the chance to taste, feel, and smell the latest varieties they’ve bred at their Citrus Research and Education Center in Lake Alfred. Guests sampled more than 50 varieties of citrus fruits. They then filled out a survey gauging their […]
UF/IFAS Leads Multistate Research to Reduce Pepper Diseases; Boost Production
Peppers are popular. Consumers eat all kinds, including jalapenos, habaneros, chilis and more. Because people eat so much of the fruit, they’re worth hundreds of millions of dollars a year to Florida and national economies. In fact, in 2018, bell and chili peppers alone were a $181 million-a-year industry in Florida and a $628 million […]
New Fertilizer Technology May Help Farmers Reduce Nitrogen Load
In the Suwannee Valley, farmers are diligently searching for solutions, or Best Management Practices (BMPs), to efficiently use fertilizers in crop production. At the UF/IFAS North Florida Research and Education Center – Suwannee Valley (UF/IFAS NFREC-SV), a team led by Bob Hochmuth, UF/IFAS Extension regional specialized agent for vegetable crops and assistant center director, has […]
Growers Should Manage Tomato Bacterial Spot While Seedlings are in Transplant Facilities
New findings from the University of Florida scientists could help tomato growers nationwide in their battle against a damaging disease. With 37,000 acres, Florida’s tomato industry is a $520 million-a-year crop, so it’s critical to find sources of diseases so growers can avoid or treat them to sustain their yields. But a bacterium called Xanthomonas can […]