The April issue of VSCNews magazine explores biodiversity, conservation funding, watermelons and a variety of other topics.
First up, an article by University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) professor Oscar Liburd and postdoctoral research associate Lorena Lopez, discusses how to control sweetpotato whiteflies with biological control agents like predatory mites in squash production.
Conservation funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture can help growers implement good land stewardship practices in an economically sustainable way. Kristin Woods, regional Extension agent in Alabama, shares how growers can capitalize on conservation funding and enhance produce safety.
Manjul Dutt, a research assistant scientist, and Ali Sarkhosh, an assistant professor, both at UF/IFAS, collaborate about muscadine grape production. The authors discuss muscadine’s desirable traits, grapevine improvement efforts and more.
Farmers realize the importance of biodiversity — the variety of plants, animals and microorganisms within an ecosystem, both above and below the soil to maximize the performance of their operation and to protect the environment. Researchers at the University of Georgia look at the steps growers can take to help restore and maintain biodiversity on their operation.
The new Making Sense of Biologicals sponsored series of articles aims to educate growers on the diverse class of inputs known as agricultural biologicals. The April issue discusses how to enhance your crops with seaweed.
The watermelon spotlight also returns to the April issue as growers are gearing up for harvest.
Two growers, Carr Hussey and Bill Brim, shared their views on last year’s watermelon season and their expectations for this year.
Also featured in the spotlight, AgNet Media’s Clint Thompson provides readers with the latest watermelon news, including whitefly management, improving flavor and National Watermelon Promotion Board appointments.
Find all these articles and more, coming soon in the next issue of VSCNews magazine.
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