Category: Pests & Disease

House rooftops and palm trees in Florida illuminated by soft light.

Innovadora herramienta ayuda a propietarios y cultivadores a proteger las emblemáticas palmeras frente a la pudrición del tronco


November 13, 2025

Creado por Lourdes Mederos, gerente de relaciones públicas en español para el Departamento de Comunicaciones de UF/IFAS. ¿Alguna vez se ha preguntado por qué algunas variedades de palmeras prosperan, mientras que otras pierden de pronto ... READ MORE

Category: Home Landscapes, Home Management, Pests & Disease, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Research
Tags: Bananos, Braham Dhillon, Caña De Azúcar, Centro De Investigacion Y Educacion De UF/IFAS En Fort Lauderdale, Cocotero, Cocoteros, Conservacion, Cultivos, Davie, Enfermedad, Enfermedades, Español, Especies De Palmera, Estudio, Evaluar La Resistencia, Experimentos, Florida, Folíolos, Fungi, Germoplasma De Palmera, Hongo, Investigacion, Jardines, Mejoramiento Genetico, Paisajes, Palma, Palmas Reales, Palmera, Palmera Bucanera, Palmera Datilera Común, Palmera Datilera De Las Islas Canarias, Palmera Real, Palmera Real De Puerto Rico, Palmera Washingtonia, Palmeras Nativas, Patios, Patogenos, Pina, Resilencia, Resistentes, Servicio De Investigación Agrícola Del Departamento De Agricultura De Los Estados Unidos, Spanish, Sukhwinder Singh, Thielaviopsis, UF-IFAS, University Of Florida Institute Of Food And Agricultural Sciences, USDA-ARS, Variabilidad En Resistencia, Variedades Resistentes
Dead palm tree in an open field.

Innovative tool offers palm owners, growers new line of defense against trunk rot, protecting iconic trees


November 13, 2025

Ever wonder why some palm varieties flourish while others suddenly bend at the trunk or topple over completely? From the iconic coconut palm to towering royal palms, these signature features of Florida’s landscapes are facing a silent ... READ MORE

Category: Agribusiness, Conservation, Crops, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Research
Tags: Advancement, Biological Controls, Braham Dhillon, Canary Island Date Palms, Coconut Palm, Conservation, Date Palms, Disease, Disease Resistance, Entomology And Nematology, Fort Lauderdale Research And Education Center, Fronds, Fungicides, Germplasm Collection, Institute Of Food And Agricultural Sciences, Invasive, Leaflets, Lethal Fungus, Monica Elliott, News, Palm, Palm Landscape, Pathogens, Plant Pathology, Plant Pathology Department, Research, Resilient, Royal Palms, Thielaviopsis Trunk Rot, Trunk Rot, U.S. Department Of Agriculture Southern Sustainable Agriculture Research And Education (USDA-SSARE), UF-IFAS, University Of Florida, USDA, USDA-ARS, Wahingtonia Palms
A field of cogongrass - ubiquitous in a field.

Can invasive plants increase tick exposure risk? Scientists reveal a surprising link to human health


November 12, 2025

An invasive grass found on almost every continent and considered a pest in 73 countries isn’t just weeding out native plants, it is creating a haven for disease-carrying ticks and raising public health risk concerns. A new University of ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, , Conservation, Crops, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Health & Nutrition, Home Landscapes, Invasive Species, Lawn, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS Research, Wildlife
Tags: Agronomy Department, Ask IFAS, Cogongrass, Conservation Efforts, Disease, Drew Hiatt, Entomology And Nematology, Forest, Health, Human, Institute Of Food And Agricultural Sciences, Invasion Science, Invasion Science Institute, Invasive Species, Lakeland, Lime Disease, Luke Flory, Mosquito, News, Rick, Southeast United States, Tick-borne, U.S> Forestry Service, UF, UF-IFAS, University Of Florida

Porterweed Rust


November 12, 2025

Sometimes nature can be quite beautiful. This is rust (Puccinia urbaniana) infecting native porterweed (Stachytarpheta jamaicensis). If you look closely, you can even see tiny fly larvae feeding on the spores of the rust fungus.Rust is a type ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Horticulture, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Extension, UF/IFAS Research, UF/IFAS Teaching
Tags: Florida Friendly Landscape, Horticulture, Manatee County, Manatee County Extension

New Air Potato Beetle Species Release


November 11, 2025

They are small but mighty. A new species of air potato beetle is being reared and released in Florida to wage war against the invasive air potato vine. First, a little background on the enemy. The air potato vine was introduced in Florida ... READ MORE

Category: , Conservation, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Forests, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease
Tags: Air Potato Beetle, Air Potato Vine, Invasive Plant, Invasive Species
Florida with magnifying glass and insect

November 2025 First Friday with Florida First Detector


November 10, 2025

Recap of November 2025 First Friday with Florida First Detector This month’s Florida First Detector webinar took a closer look at Hymenoptera. This is an order of insects that includes wasps, bees, ants, hornets, and sawflies. Hymenopterans ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Crops, Farm Management, Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Livestock, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, Professional Development, Turf, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Bees, Biosecurity, Early Detection, Eradication, FFD25-26, FloridaFirstDetector, Honeybees, Hornet, SeminoleCountyAg, Wasp

What’s New on Ask IFAS: Wildlife Ecology and Conservation (Sept. – Oct.)


November 6, 2025

Ospreys and Observing Osprey Behaviors through the University of Florida Osprey Cam Mark E. Hostetler, Steven A. Johnson, Martin Main. This publication provides information about ospreys (Pandion haliaetus). Further, it discusses an osprey ... READ MORE

Category: Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Wildlife
Tags: Bees, Department Of Wildlife Ecology And Conservation, Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake, Iguana, Key Largo Woodrat, Osprey

Plant Status Change – Tropical Milkweed is Now Listed as a Category II Invasive


November 5, 2025

  Tropical Milkweed is now Invasive! Tropical milkweed (Asclepias curassavica) was once a go to larval host plant for monarch butterflies. As of June 2025 the plant status has changed. It is now listed as invasive in the entire state ... READ MORE

Category: , Florida-Friendly Landscaping, Home Landscapes, Horticulture, Invasive Species, Natural Resources, Pests & Disease, Pests & Disease, SFYL Hot Topic, UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Asclepias, Butterfly, Invasive Species, Native Plants, Tropical Milkweed, Tsilvasy

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