Tag: Strawberries

A man speaks into a microphone in front of strawberry research posters at an outdoor event.

From 5,000 strawberries to DNA breakthrough: Doctoral grad sweetens the future of fruit

by Brad Buck
March 6, 2026

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 ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Horticulture
Tags: 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
Two men examining plants in a field with agricultural machinery in the background.

First graduates of UF’s plant-breeding Ph.D. use genetics to help growers boost yields, improve shelf life, more

by Brad Buck
May 6, 2026

About four years ago, a small cohort of ambitious young scientists stepped into uncharted territory as the first students in the University of Florida’s new plant breeding Ph.D. program in the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences, part ... READ MORE

Category: UF/IFAS
Tags: Agronomy, Ali Babar, Anandi Karn, Blueberries, College Of Agricultural And Life Science, Elissar Alam, Estafania Flores, Esteban Rios, Forage, Fusarium Wilt, Graduates, Gulf Coast Research And Education Center, Horticultural Sciences, Jessica Chitwood-Brown, Manuel Gastelbondo, Pablo Sipowicz, Patricio Munoz, Ph.D., Plant Breeding Ph.D. Program, Samuel Ipinyomi, Strawberries, Sudip Kunwar, Tomatoes, Tropical Research And Education Center, UF/IFAS Plant Breeding, Vance Whitaker, Vanilla, Wheat, Xingbo Wu
Fresh and vibrant strawberries.

Growing Strawberries in the Florida Home Garden

by Paul Roberts
April 20, 2026

It is New Year’s Day. In the cool gray dawn, you sleepily slide your feet into a pair of slippers, still half-dreaming of the night before. No one else has woken up; the first fruits of the year are yours, and yours alone. At that thought, ... READ MORE

Category: Fruits & Vegetables
Tags: Craig K. Chandler, Home Garden Crops, Horticultural Sciences Department, Natalia A. Peres, Sriyanka Lahiri, Strawberries, Sydney Park Brown, Vance M. Whitaker
Three persons evaluating strawberries for decay and damage

Postharvest Lab Research Targets Strawberry and Blueberry Fruit Quality and Shelf Life

by Joe McQueen
April 13, 2026

The University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Indian River Research and Education Center’s (IRREC) Postharvest Technology lab, led by Mark Ritenour, is researching how to reduce decay in strawberries and blueberries ... READ MORE

Category: Agribusiness, Agriculture, Crops, Food Safety, UF/IFAS, UF/IFAS Research
Tags: Blueberries, Fruit Quality, Postharvest, Strawberries
Close-up of strawberries, with ripe red and unripe greenish-yellow fruit, and a white flower.

Robots may eventually help kill weeds that impede strawberry yield

by Brad Buck
April 13, 2026

BALM, Fla. --- Think of University of Florida scientists Nathan Boyd and Arnold Schumann a bit like surgeons. Except in this case, their operating room is a strawberry field. With their research, Boyd and Schumann hope to eventually help ... READ MORE

Category: Agriculture, Farm Management
Tags: #aiatuf, Algorithm, Arnold Schumann, Artificial Intelligence, Citrus Research And Education Center, Gulf Coast Research And Education Center, Horticultural Sciences, Nathan Boyd, Precision Agriculture, Robots, Soil Water And Ecosystem Sciences, Spraying, Strawberries, Weeds

UF/IFAS awarded 1st Ph.D. plant breeding program in Florida, one of few in USA

by Brad Buck
April 13, 2026

Working in labs and fields across Florida, a new generation of students will start earning a Ph.D. in plant breeding from the University of Florida – the first program of its kind in Florida and one of a few in the nation. The UF/IFAS College ... READ MORE

Category: UF/IFAS Research, UF/IFAS Teaching
Tags: Artificial Intelligence, Citrus, College Of Agricultural And Life Sciences, Corn, Crops, Elaine Turner, Environmental Benefits, Fiber, Forage, Gene Editing, Genetics, Global Food Security, Hunger, Lettuce, New Program, Peanuts, Ph.D., Plant Breeding, Strawberries, Tomatoes, Vance Whitaker
Hands holding a bunch of ripe strawberries with green leaves.

UF study gives strawberry growers a ray of (UV) light at the end of their pest tunnel

by Brad Buck
April 13, 2026

BALM, Fla. --- For a few years, University of Florida plant pathologist Natalia Peres has used an ultraviolet light system to thwart strawberry pathogens. Peres even published a study this year that showed the system helps control powdery mildew. Two ... READ MORE

Category: Crops, Pests & Disease
Tags: Biological Control, Chilli Thrips, College Of Agricultural And Life Sciences, Joseph Montemayor, Mites, Natalia Peres, Pests, Sriyanka Lahiri, Strawberries, UVC Radiation
Hands holding a bunch of ripe strawberries with green leaves.

Fall: A time to grow and eat your own strawberries at home

by Brad Buck
April 10, 2026

While Florida is known as the winter strawberry capital of the world, you can plant strawberries at home now. Yes, fall is officially here – even if the temperatures don’t always match the calendar date. That means the air is soon going ... READ MORE

Category: UF/IFAS Extension
Tags: Breeder, Cultivars, Fall, Florida Master Gardener Volunteer Program, Gulf Coast Research And Education Center, Home Gardening, Horticultural Sciences, Strawberries, Vance Whitaker, Wendy Wilber
Two scientists fly a drone in a research field.

Ag engineer comes ‘home’ to UF/IFAS; uses AI to help reduce farm labor costs

by Brad Buck
April 8, 2026

Dana Choi grew up in South Korea but considers Florida her second home. She spent several years on the main campus of the University of Florida, getting her master’s and doctoral degrees in agricultural and biological engineering from the ... READ MORE

Category: Agribusiness, Agriculture
Tags: Agricultural And Biological Engineering, AI, Artificial Intelligence, Dana Choi, Gulf Coast Research And Education Center, Robotics, South Korea, Strawberries, Sustainable Agriculture, Tomatoes
Close-up of a strawberry plant with green leaves and red stems, set against a black covering. Ripe and unripe strawberries are visible in the background.

A $130 million drain: UF researcher looks to genetics to rein in wasteful strawberry runners

by Brad Buck
April 8, 2026

Strawberry growers pour roughly $130 million a year, nationally, into a surprisingly stubborn problem: a part of the plant that sabotages fruit production. These fast-growing offshoots – called “runners” – stretch out from the mother ... READ MORE

Category: Agribusiness, Agriculture
Tags: DNA, Doctoral Student, Fruit Production, Genetics, Growers, Gulf Coast Research And Education Center, Kaitlyn Vondracek, Labor, Nurseries, Seonghee Lee, Strawberries, Strawberry Runners, UF Plant Breeding Ph.D. Program

Subscribe For More Great Content

IFAS Blogs Categories