Category: Agriculture
Center scientists aim to solve devastating citrus greening, first, then other crop diseases
January 6, 2026
University of Florida scientists are joining forces at the Crop Transformation Center (CTC) to wage a high-tech war against pests and diseases threatening Florida’s crops – arming farmers with cutting-edge solutions to protect the state’s ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, UF/IFASTags: Alfred Huo, Bioinformatics, Charlie Messina, Citrus, Citrus Greening, Citrus Research And Education Center, Crop Transformation Center, Gene Editing, Genetics, Growers, Horticultural Sciences, Huanglongbing (HLB), Michael Rogers, Mid-Florida Research And Education Center, Single Cell Sequencing, Transgenic
January 2026 First Friday with Florida First Detector
January 5, 2026
Recap of January 2026 First Friday with Florida First Detector In this month, we explored the fascinating, and sometimes frustrating, world of plant pathogens. Simply put, a pathogen is any organism that causes disease. For plants, these culprits ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Crops, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Fruits & Vegetables, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Lawn, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, Professional Development, Turf, UF/IFAS ExtensionTags: Bacteria, Early Detection, Eradication, FFD25-26, FloridaFirstDetector, Fungi, Invasive Species, SeminoleCountyAg, Virus
Stinkhorn Mushrooms are Wild and Smelly Fungi
December 30, 2025
Mushrooms are creating a stink in Northwest Florida lately. A foul-smelling mushroom from the stinkhorn fungus is popping up in many of our landscapes. It is their odor that normally gets the attention of a homeowner out in their landscape. ... READ MORE
Category: Home Landscapes, Pests & Disease, Pests & DiseaseTags: Orange Mushrooms That Stink, Smelly Mushrooms, Stinkhorn Mushrooms
Grow more Keystone Plants? … Here is a pictorial list!
December 27, 2025
Keystone Plants for Central Florida Planting native species is an excellent first step toward attracting beneficial insects. In his influential book Nature’s Best Hope, author, conservationist, and entomologist Douglas Tallamy explains ... READ MORE
Category: 4-H & Youth, Agriculture, Clubs & Volunteers, Coasts & Marine, Conservation, Curriculum, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Forests, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Research, WildlifeTags: Discovery Gardens, Doug Tallamy, Keystone Plants, Native Florida Plants, Perennials, Shrubs, Trees
Is My Lawn Dead—and Should I Be Fertilizing Right Now?
December 22, 2025
Winter lawn care tips for St. Lucie County homeowners Each winter, people in St. Lucie County notice their grass growing more slowly or turning brown. This makes many homeowners ask: “Is my lawn dead?” and “Should I add fertilizer to ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Lawn, Recreation, Turf, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS ExtensionTags: Extension, Florida Friendly Landscape, UF/IFAS Extension St. Lucie County
Beef Quality Assurance (BQA)-What’s the Big Deal?
December 22, 2025
Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) is basically a synonym for Best Management Practices with the spin of having a focus on the consumer. Beef producers are doing their best to assure quality beef for their buyers. The BQA website best describes the ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, Farm Management, LivestockTags: SFBF, SFBFP
Yaupon Holly: America’s Native Tea Plant
December 19, 2025
When you think of tea, your mind probably jumps to green or black tea from Asia. But did you know the only caffeinated plant native to North America grows right here in Florida? Meet Yaupon Holly (Ilex vomitoria), a resilient evergreen shrub ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, CropsTags: Caffeinated Plant, Citrus, Florida Tea, Native, Organic, Yaupon Holly
From 5,000 strawberries to DNA breakthrough: Doctoral grad sweetens the future of fruit
December 18, 2025
As we enter the height of Florida’s strawberry production season, many consumers crave the taste and aroma of the fruit. That’s part of what compels Mark Porter to try to enhance those qualities.For his doctoral dissertation, Porter led ... READ MORE
Category: Agriculture, HorticultureTags: Aroma, Consumers, DNA, DNA Test, Doctoral Dissertation, Flavor, Genome, Growers, Gulf Coast Research And Education Center, Mark Porter, Ph.D., Plant Breeding, Plant Breeding Ph.D. Program, Seonghee Lee, Sour, Strawberries, Strawberry Breeding, Sweet, Taste
Beef Production: Past, Present, Future
December 17, 2025
Beef production, and the future of it, have been at the forefront of conversations lately in the cattle industry. Knowing that cattle inventories are at the lowest they have been in over 70 years, it is also known that the quantity of beef produced ... READ MORE
Category: Agribusiness, Agriculture, Farm Management, Livestock, UF/IFAS ExtensionTags: Beef Cattle, Beef Cattle Market, Hannah Baker, Range Cattle REC, SV Ag Update