By Abolfazl Hajihassani and Josiah Marquez Multiple cover crops are excellent candidates for vegetable growing systems in the southern United States due to their ability to fix nitrogen, build and maintain soil organic matter, and suppress soilborne pathogens, nematodes and weeds. In addition, cover crops can be a valuable strategy for improving microbial diversity and soil health when properly implemented. …
UF/IFAS Industrial Hemp Pilot Project: Progress and Plans
By Lourdes Rodriguez Just past the midpoint of a pilot project to study if industrial hemp grows well in Florida, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) researchers are already looking ahead to see what more they can learn. The UF/IFAS Industrial Hemp Pilot Project team of scientists is engaged in a two-year research project started with hemp plantings in the spring of 2019. A report on the project’s findings will go …
Fusarium Wilt: A Quick Review
By Nicholas S. Dufault It has been more than 120 years since an unknown watermelon wilt disease was observed to cause heavy losses in the southern United States. The re-emergence of this disease, identified as fusarium wilt (FW) caused by the fungus Fusarium oxysporum f. sp. niveum (Fon), has led to a need for alternative control practices. MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES Numerous …
Sneak Peek: May 2020 VSCNews Magazine
By Ashley Robinson The May issue of VSCNews Magazine targets the best pest management practices for growers. Researchers from the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) are already looking ahead and making plans to see what more can be learned about growing hemp in Florida, as they reach the midpoint of their pilot project. Lourdes Rodriguez, …
Tips for Two Troublesome Watermelon Diseases
By Bhabesh Dutta Phytophthora fruit rot has been a concern for watermelon growers not only in Georgia but also in other states that grow watermelon. No single measure has been shown to suppress the disease consistently and effectively, especially when environmental conditions are favorable for disease development. Compared to other watermelon diseases, this disease is difficult to manage and strictly …
Wildflowers Impact Watermelon Pollinators
By Mimi Jenkins A resilient and stable pollinator community includes a diverse suite of pollinators with a range of nesting habits, foraging behaviors and activity periods. These different behaviors and traits complement each other and can buffer against any year-to-year fluctuations or environmental changes that affect species differently. BEYOND HONEY BEES In many pollinator-dependent crop systems, honey bee colonies are …
Asian Vegetable Crop Interest Increasing in Florida
By Mary Dixon, Yanlin Wang and Guodong Liu At the 2019 Florida Ag Expo, visitors gathered at the Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GCREC) for a trade show and field tour. Students and faculty from the University of Florida (UF) set up an Asian vegetable display that was visited by approximately 75 growers, educators, students and Extensions agents. Visitors …
Watermelon weed control: Understanding the options
By A.S. Culpepper and J.C. Vance Watermelon production is fascinating, diverse and complex as are the weed management programs currently available. The first step to success is ensuring no weeds are emerged when planting. Tillage, cover crops and/or herbicides offer effective options. Tillage, commonly used, includes numerous options from preparing the land to plowing row middles. For weed control, deep …
Vegetable Fumigation: Part Science, Part Art and Part Experience
By A.S. Culpepper Vegetable growers continue to face a tremendous number of production challenges; fumigation is no exception. With the loss of methyl bromide and Paladin, current sustainable systems for producing multiple crops on a single mulch installation often include finding the optimum combination of 1,3-dichloropropene (Telone II), chloropicrin and/or metam sodium (Vapam, Sectagon, etc.). However, fumigant selection is only …
Sneak Peek: April 2020 VSCNews Magazine
By Ashley Robinson The April issue of VSCNews magazine is packed with information for both conventional and organic growers. Asian vegetables grow well in Florida and have the potential for high value in the market. As interest in these crops increases throughout the state, an article written by a group of researchers at the University of Florida (UF) – Mary …