Crops In Florida Research Articles

What is Trending in Florida’s Commodity Crops: A Google Trends Analysis

The purpose of this new 3-page article is to briefly discuss the trends of search terms, with an emphasis on Florida’s major crops, that may provide insight into the general public’s interest. With increased knowledge about the interest and perception of the general public regarding Florida crops, Florida’s agricultural industries can better respond to the needs and concerns of consumers. The target audience of this publication includes those involved in agriculture as well as the general public. Written by Tong Geon Lee and published by the UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department.

Recommendations for Management of Whiteflies, Whitefly-Transmitted Viruses, and Insecticide Resistance for Production of Cucurbit Crops in Florida

This publication lists and describes common viruses spread in cucurbit crops by whiteflies. It includes strategies for managing whiteflies, most of them originally from a similar publication on managing whiteflies in tomatoes.

First Report of Meloidogyne javanica on Globe Artichoke in Florida, U.S.A.

Globe artichoke (Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus L.) is native to the Mediterranean region and cultivated worldwide for its edible flower buds and the medicinal value of its leaves (Pignone and Sonnante 2004). In 2019, artichokes were planted on 29 km2 predominantly in California, with a yield of over 100 million kg (USDA 2020). It has been grown as a specialty crop in Florida since 2017 (Agehara 2017a). Meloidogyne spp. (root-knot nematodes/RKNs) can lead to yield losses to artichoke (Greco et al. 2005). In June 2020, artichokes (cv. Imperial Star) with stunting, wilting, and galled-root symptoms were observed in a research field with sandy soil located at the University of Florida Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (UF/GCREC), Wimauma, Florida. The goal of this report was to identify the RKN species collected from two symptomatic artichoke roots. Morphological measurements (mean, standard deviation and range) of 15 second-stage juveniles (J2s) included body length = 409.1 ± 31.6 (360.3 - 471.3) µm, body width = 15.4 ± 1.6 (12.4 - 18.8) µm, and stylet length = 14.7 ± 0.7 (13.9 -16.1) µm. Perineal patterns of five matured females had a high dorsal arch and double lateral lines. Morphological characteristics of the RKN cultures were consistent with the description of M. javanica (Eisenback and Triantaphyllou 1991). DNA was extracted respectively from two RKN females isolated from the diseased artichoke roots. The nematode species was confirmed with primers Fjav/Rjav and resulted in ≈ 670 bp fragment (Zijlstra et al. 2000). The COXII region of mtDNA was amplified by C2F3/1108 (Powers and Harris 1993), and the sequencing results were submitted to the NCBI with GeneBank Accession No. MZ397905. The molecular sequences had 100% identity with M. javanica in COXII (MK033440 and MK033439). The pathogenicity test was conducted in the greenhouse at UF/GCREC from May to August 2021 (temperature = 26.7 ± 4.1°C, relative humidity = 83.9 ± 14.6 %). Each of the ten 6.5-in-diameter plastic pots containing 3.8-L pasteurized soil was seeded with one artichoke seed. Five pots were inoculated with 5000 eggs of the field RKN cultures 4-week after planting, and five pots served as the untreated control. Two months after inoculation, galled symptoms were only observed in inoculated plants with an average gall index (Bridge and Page 1980) of 6.2 ± 2.2; 99,240 ± 72,250 eggs were extracted from each root system, and the nematode reproduction factor was 19.9 ± 14.4. Meloidogyne spp. has been reported on artichoke in Europe, Asia, and South America (Greco et al. 2005). This is the first report of RKN on artichoke in the United States. Meloidogyne javanica caused severe root gall symptoms and visible aboveground damage in the form of chlorosis, stunting, and wilting of artichoke planted at the UF/GCREC research farm. Meloidogyne javanica is the predominant RKN species at the UF/GCREC research farm and one of the most common RKNs in Florida (Gu and Desaeger 2021). Artichoke is a new crop in Florida, and RKNs is likely to be one of the main soilborne problems for its production in the state. Its long growing season (October - May) (Agehara 2017b) allows for high nematode reproduction rates. Several new growers have already reported RKN as a problem in their fields. For artichoke to become a commodity in Florida, managing RKNs will be critical. This report provides new information on the risk that RKNs pose to artichoke, a newly established specialty crop in Florida.

Sugarcane Yield Response to Phosphorus Fertilizer as Related to Extractable Soil Phosphorus on Florida Mineral Soils

ABSTRACT Relating phosphorus (P) fertilization to crop demand in sugarcane (Saccharum spp.) grown on mineral soils in southern Florida is critical for minimized environmental impact and sustained crop production. Previous P fertilizer recommendations date to 1974 and so revised recommendations are needed for sugarcane on these soils which account for 29% of the crop in Florida. Phosphorus rate studies were conducted at seven field locations (16 total site-crop years) with P rates of 0 to 73 kg P ha−1 at Site 1 and 0 to 61 kg P ha−1 at Sites 2–7 using small-plots (82 or 120 m2 plots) on four soil series representing Spodosols, Entisols, and Alfisols. Soil P extractions with Mehlich 3, 0.7 M ammonium acetate, and water were evaluated in relation to relative sucrose yield and leaf P concentrations. Mehlich 3 had stronger relationships with relative yield and leaf P and a Mehlich 3 P value of 80 g m−3 is proposed as a critical value above which no P fertilizer would be required. Without added P fertilizer, Mehlich 3-extractable P values decreased annually by an average of 20%. Results suggest maintaining 36.7 kg P ha−1 as the maximum P fertilizer rate for sugarcane in mineral soils. Abbreviations: EAA: Everglades Agricultural Area; BMPs: best management practices; DAP: diammonium phosphate; MCH: megagram (Mg) cane ha−1; MSH: megagram (Mg) sucrose ha−1; KSM: kg sucrose Mg−1 cane; M3P: Mehlich 3-extractable soil P; AmAcP: ammonium acetate-extractable soil P; Pw: water-extractable soil P

Management of Nematodes and Soil Fertility with Sunn Hemp Cover Crop

Sunn hemp, Crotalaria juncea L. is a rapidly growing crop used for fiber production in India and Pakistan. It is popular as a green manure in many tropical and subtropical areas in the world, and is also valued because it suppresses weeds, slows soil erosion, and reduces root-knot nematode populations. Recently, as cultivars adapted for seed production in the southeastern United States have been introduced, there is a growing interest in rotating sunn hemp with agronomic crops in the southern United States and in using sunn hemp as a summer cover crop in Florida and other southeastern states. This publication informs agricultural professionals about the impacts of sunn hemp cover cropping on soil fertility and plant-parasitic nematodes.

Nematode Management in Sweet Potatoes (including Boniatos)

The primary intended audience of this publication is agricultural professionals involved in commercial sweet potato production directly or through advising roles (Extension agents, producers, crop consultants, academics, etc.). The purpose is to guide professionals in improving nematode management in sweet potato production and to give a concise but relatively comprehensive summary of relevant information to understand and manage nematodes in this crop in Florida.

Areawide management of fall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), using selected cover crop plants

BackgroundFall armyworm, Spodoptera frugiperda (J. E. Smith) is a migratory moth that annually migrates northward each spring from sites in southern Florida and southern Texas. This caterpillar pest feeds on and damages row, turf and vegetable crops in the eastern and central U.S. Before migrating in spring, it feeds on cover crops in central and eastern Florida and expands its populations. Our objective was to use multi-year studies to compare fall armyworm populations that develop in cover crop plants.MethodsA series of field experiments and a laboratory feeding study were conducted to compare infestation and feeding and of fall armyworm on different cover crop plants. Field experiments had plots planted with corn (Zea mays L.), sorghum-sudangrass [Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench], a standard cover crop in Florida, and two alternative cover crops, sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea L.) and cowpea [Vigna unguiculata (L.) Walpers spp. unguiculata]. Another trial compared populations in sorghum-sudangrass and in mixtures of sorghum-sudangrass with buckwheat (Fagopyrum esculentum Moench) or pearl millet (Cenchrus americanus (L.) Morrone). Fall armyworm larvae were fed and allowed to develop on different sunn hemp germplasm in a laboratory trial.ResultsField populations of fall armyworm were highest on corn, followed by sorghum-sudangrass. Sunn hemp and cowpea had larval populations 70–96% less than on sorghum-sudangrass, suggesting replacement of this cover crop with either plant species might help reduce areawide populations of resident or migratory fall armyworm. Larvae collected from cover crop plots had parasitism levels that averaged 30%, with Chelonus insularis (Hymenoptera: Braconidae) emerging as the most commonly-collected species. Larval feeding on different sunn hemp germplasm lines resulted in no difference in weight gain.ConclusionsReplacing sorghum-sudangrass with sunn hemp varieties or germplasm should be acceptable as a replacement cover crop for areawide management of fall armyworm.

First Report of watermelon crinkle leaf-associated virus 1 (WCLaV-1) and WCLaV-2 in Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus) Plants Coinfected with Cucurbit chlorotic yellows virus in Florida.

Watermelon (Citrullus lanatus L.) and other cucurbits are major crops in Florida. During the 2020 and 2021 seasons, watermelon plants with foliar virus-like symptoms of yellow mottling and chlorosis, mild leaf wrinkling and thickened leaves were observed in commercial fields (40 to 150 ha) in five counties (Desoto, Glades, Osceola, Seminole, and Charlotte) at >50% field incidence. Initial screening of 13 field-collected samples (2 to 4/County) for potyviruses with the Agdia POTY Immunostrip (Agdia, Inc. Elkhart, IN) were negative. Total nucleic acid extracts from each sample (RNeasy Plant Mini Kit, Qiagen, Germantown, MD) were used in one-step RT-PCR (Qiagen OneStep RT-PCR kit) with species-specific primer targeting squash vein yellowing virus (SqVYV), papaya ringspot virus-W (PRSV-W) (Adkins et al., 2008), cucurbit yellow stunting disorder virus (CYSDV) (Polston et al. 2008), cucurbit chlorotic yellows virus (CCYV) (Hernandez et al., 2021a), watermelon crinkle leaf-associated virus 1 (WCLaV-1), and WCLaV-2 (Hernandez et al., 2021b). The samples were also tested for cucurbit leaf crumple virus (CuLCrV) as per Hagen et al. (2008). All 13 samples were negative for SqVYV, PRSV-W, CuLCrV, and CYSDV, but 7 samples (53.8%) from 4 counties tested positive for CCYV, 12 (92.3%) from 5 counties were positive for WCLaV-1, and WCLaV-2 was detected in 8 samples (61.5%) from 5 counties. Three samples were singly infected with WCLaV-1 while the remaining 10 were mixed infected with different combination of 2 or 3 viruses. Notably, symptoms on all 13 plants were visually indistinguishable. To verify the results, two randomly chosen gene-specific fragments per virus, obtained with primers CCYV-v1330/c2369, CCYV-v4881/c5736, WCLaV-1vRP/1cRP, WCLaV-1vMP/1cMP, WCLaV-2vRP/2cRP, and WLaV 2vMP/2cMP, were excised from the gel, cloned, and Sanger-sequenced as described (Hernandez et al., 2021a, 2021b). In pairwise comparisons, the ~1 kb partial ORF1a (GenBank accession nos. MZ325846 to MZ325847) and 753 bp complete coat protein cistron (MZ325848 to MZ325849) of CCYV from Florida shared 98.9-99.5%/98.4-99.6% nucleotide (nt)/amino acid (aa) and 99.4-99.8%/99.6-100% nt/aa identities, respectively with the corresponding sequences of global CCYV isolates. The partial RNA1 (MZ325850 to MZ325851) and RNA2 (MZ325852 to MZ325853) sequences of WCLaV-1 from Florida shared 99.2-99.8%/100% nt/aa and 98.9-100%/99.3-100% nt/aa identities, respectively with the corresponding global sequences of WCLaV-1 isolates. Lastly, the partial RNA1 (MZ325854 to MZ325857) and RNA2 (MZ325858 to MZ325861) sequences of WCLaV-2 from Florida shared 96.4-99.8%/97-100% nt/aa and 96.5-100%/95.9-100% nt/aa identities, respectively with the corresponding global sequences of WCLaV-2 isolates. This is the first report of WCLaV-1 and WCLaV-2 from Florida and the first documentation of the occurrence of CCYV in South Florida. CCYV has been reported previously from California (Wintermantel et al. 2019), Georgia (Kavalappara et al. 2021), and recently from North Florida (M. Paret, pers. comm) but WCLaV-1 and WCLaV-2 have only been reported from Texas (Hernandez et al., 2021b), after their discovery in China (Xin et al. 2017). The results indicate further expansion of the geographical range of these cucurbit-infecting viruses, although their longer but undetected presence in Florida is plausible due to the resemblance of their associated symptoms with those attributed to known viruses. References Adkins, et al., 2008. Plant Dis. 92:1119-1123. https://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/PDIS-92-7-1119. Hagen, et al. 2008. Plant Dis. 92:781-793. https://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/pdfplus/10.1094/PDIS-92-5-0781. Hernandez, et al. 2021a. Plant Dis. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-02-21-0378-PDN. Hernandez, et al., 2021b. Plant Dis. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-02-21-0249-PDN Kavalappara, et al., 2021. Plant Dis. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-11-20-2429-PDN. Polston, et al. 2008. Plant Dis. 92(8):1251. https://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/PDIS-92-8-1251B. Wintermantel, et al., 2019. Plant Dis. 103(4):778. https://doi.org/10.1094/PDIS-08-18-1390-PDN. Xin, et al., 2017. Front. Microbiol. 8:1514, doi: 10.3389/fmicb.2017.01514.

Pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) suppression on jalapeño pepper using non-host insect repellent plants

Pepper weevil, Anthonomus eugenii Cano is the most harmful insect pest of pepper, Capsicum annum L., an important crop in Florida and several other states in the southern region of the United States. All commercially cultivated peppers, including jalapeño peppers, are susceptible to pepper weevil. The use of broad-spectrum insecticides is the primary management tool for controlling pepper weevil. Their continuous use has led to the development of resistance and elimination of natural enemies. Therefore, alternative approaches are needed for effective control. Studies were conducted to evaluate the effectiveness of intercropping non-host insect repellent plants (Ocimum basilicum L. (basil), Tagetes patula L. (marigold), Brassica oleracea L. (cabbage), and Coriandrum sativum L. (cilantro)) with jalapeño pepper on pepper weevil population suppression. Each of the four non-host plants consisted of individual treatments and were compared to a jalapeño pepper only (untreated control), or a jalapeño pepper with a standard insecticide regimen of thiamethoxam (positive control). Parameters evaluated include the number of pepper weevil adults on plants, number of infested fallen fruit, and marketable yield. Infested fruit collected from each treatment plot were dissected to evaluate pepper weevil (adult, pupae, and larvae) density. The non-host plant treatments reduced the number of pepper weevil adults found on jalapeño plants, infested fruit, and pepper weevils in infested fruit but not marketable yield when compared with the control treatment. This information is a step forward into finding a sustainable approach for the management of pepper weevil.

Survey of Florida Olive Groves during Olive Fruit Development: Monitoring for Stink Bugs and Olive Fruit Flies

Olives, Olea europaea L. (Oleaceae), are an emerging commercial crop in Florida; however, potential arthropod threats during olive tree establishment and fruit development remain uncharacterized. Two potential pests that may threaten olive fruit production directly are native and invasive pentatomid stink bugs, which are important pest species of many crops in the southeast, and the invasive olive fruit fly, Bactrocera oleae (Gmelin) (Diptera: Tephritidae),which is not known to be established in Florida. Monitoring for stink bugs during fruit maturation was done using dual funnel tube traps baited with stink bug lures. Yellow sticky card traps baited with food and pheromone lures were used to monitor for the olive fruit fly. Both trap types were placed in tree canopies in 4 North Central Florida olive groves during the anticipated fruit development period for 2 growing seasons. Whereas neither of the invasive species targeted (Halyomorpha halys Stål [Hemiptera: Pentatomidae] or B. oleae) were detected, several other potential pests were identified including brown stink bugs (Euschistus spp.; Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), glassy winged sharpshooters, Homalodisca vitripennis Germar (Hemiptera: Cicadellidae), and grasshoppers. No fruit damage attributable to arthropod pests was detected although fruit production was very low with limited samples. These results contribute to awareness of potential pests that may jeopardize olive fruit production and aid in the future studies to develop effective monitoring activities for Florida growers.

Nitrogen Fertilization Guidelines for Potato Production in Florida

This new 11-page publication focuses on the nitrogen (N) fertilizer best management practices (BMP) for potato crop in Florida. The aim is to provide management strategies that comply with statewide BMP guidelines to maximize yield and economic return while minimizing N losses to the environment. Written by Lincoln Zotarelli, Tara Wade, Gary K. England, and Christian T. Christensen and published by the UF/IFAS Horticultural Sciences Department.https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/hs1429

Importance of Insect Pollinators for Florida Agriculture: A Systematic Review of the Literature

Insect pollinators contribute significantly to global food production impacting both crop yields and quality, but the dependence of specific crops on insect pollinators can vary across production regions and cultivars. The state of Florida has a unique agroecosystem that supports temperate and tropical fruits, vegetables, and nuts, and these specialty crops likely have a high dependence on pollinators. We conducted a systematic review to quantify the role of insect pollinators for Florida agriculture, and to identify crops and cultivars for which recent research on pollination is lacking. For all crops, we determined the average yield losses incurred without insect pollination (“pollinator contribution value”) by synthesizing previously reported values. We found that insect pollinators are required or beneficial for 47 different crops in Florida, or 43% of all plant crop species grown in the state. Major crops in the state with complete to high dependence on insect pollinators include blueberries, mangoes, melons, squashes, and tangelos; for these crops, insect pollinators contribute 75 to 100% of crop productivity. Other major crops in Florida that are moderately to highly dependent on pollinators include avocadoes, cucumbers, field tomatoes, grapefruits, green beans, oranges (select cultivars), peppers, southern peas, and strawberries, with pollinator contributions ranging from 30 to 74%. The contribution of insect pollinators exceeds $50 million per crop per yr in Florida for 7 of its most valuable crops. Using production data at the county level, we found that pollinators contribute to agriculture in almost all Florida counties. Our review identified a number of crops for which little information on pollination requirements exists, especially for modern cultivars. We discuss gaps in our knowledge of crop pollination requirements and recommendations for future research. Estimates of pollinator contributions are invaluable for farm management and policy decisions around pollinator conservation.

Strawberry Maturity Classification from UAV and Near-Ground Imaging Using Deep Learning

Strawberry is ranked third in the value of production of the crops in Florida, USA. Classifying strawberry maturity and monitoring strawberry growth status in the field is very critical for accurate strawberry yield prediction, efficient strawberry field management, and achieving the highest crop production. The traditional method of distinguishing strawberry maturity is based on either physical appearance or internal chemical substance content. However, the traditional method is time-consuming and costly. In this research, an automatic strawberry maturity classification system was developed for the rapid and accurate classification of different strawberry maturity stages. A state-of-the-art deep learning method, You Only Look Once (YOLOv3), which is good at small object detection, was trained and applied to detect strawberry flowers and strawberry fruit at different maturity stages. Two strawberry image acquisition methods, aerial imaging and near-ground imaging, were compared by using the same deep learning image processing method. As a result, three and seven strawberry maturity stages were classified for unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) images and near-ground digital camera images, respectively. For UAV images, the highest mean average precision (mAP) of strawberry maturity classification was 0.88 for a test data set at 2 m, and the highest classification average precision (AP) was 0.93 for fully matured fruit. For near-ground digital camera images, the mAP of strawberry maturity classification was 0.89, and the highest classification AP was 0.94 for fully matured fruit as well. The result shows that YOLOv3 is an excellent approach for strawberry maturity classification on both image types.

Host suitability of summer cover crops to Meloidogyne arenaria, M. enterolobii, M. incognita and M. javanica

Summary Cover crops can be a useful tool for managing plant-parasitic nematodes provided they are poor or non-hosts for the target nematode species. A glasshouse experiment was done to determine the host status of four common cover crops in Florida, sunn hemp, cowpea, sorghum sudangrass and sunflower, to pure populations of four common tropical root-knot nematode (RKN) species Meloidogyne javanica (Mj), M. incognita (Mi), M. enterolobii (Me) and M. arenaria (Ma). Tomato was included as a susceptible control. Eight weeks after nematode inoculation (WAI), tomato showed the highest root gall damage for all tested RKN species, with gall indices (GI) between 7 (Ma) and 8.5 (Me) and reproduction factor (RF) ranging from 20 (Ma) to 50 (Mj). No visible root galls were observed for any of the RKN species on sunn hemp and sorghum sudangrass at 8 WAI. However, Mj and Mi were able to reproduce slightly on sorghum sudangrass (RF = 0.02 and 0.79, respectively). Sunflower and cowpea were infected by all four tested RKN species, but host suitability varied. Sunflower root galling ranged from 1.1 (Me) to 4.5 (Mj) and RF = 3.2 (Me) to 28.7 (Mj), while cowpea root galling ranged from 0.6 (Mi) to 5.1 (Me) and RF = 0.8 (Mi) to 67.3 (Mj). Sunn hemp and, to a lesser extent, sorghum sudangrass were poor hosts to all four tested RKN species. Sunflower was a good host to all RKN species, but root gall damage and RF were lowest for Me. Cowpea was a good host to Mj, Me and Ma, but a poor host to Mi. Our results confirm and stress the importance of RKN species identification when selecting cover crops as an RKN management strategy.

Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae) Nymph Survival and Adult Feeding Preferences for Crop Plants in Florida

Florida crop plants, including okra, sunflower, tangerine, olive, plum, pomegranate, satsuma, pear, and apple, plus amaranthus were evaluated as hosts for Halyomorpha halys (Stål) (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae). This invasive stink bug fed on all plant species, except olive and pomegranate, but completed development only on apple, pear, and satsuma. However, a significant number of nymphs developed into fifth instars on okra, tangerine, and plum. Halyomorpha halys, therefore, has the potential to complete development on apple, pear, satsuma, plum, okra, and tangerine crops in Florida.

Technology, Policy, and Market Adaptation Mechanisms for Sustainable Fresh Produce Industry: The Case of Tomato Production in Florida, USA

Tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) is an important vegetable crop in Florida, a state located in the south-eastern region of the United States. The state is the second largest producer of tomatoes in the country and contributes to almost 90% of the domestic winter tomato supplies. However, tomato farmers in Florida have come under increasing pressure due to climate changes, foreign imports, and rising production costs. The purpose of this paper is to analyze whether Florida tomato growers will continue to sustain their production given the seasonal and geographic production advantage, yet against various internal and external threats emerging throughout the fresh produce supply chain. We developed our study on a multi-disciplinary conceptual model of network (supply chain) relationship and primary and secondary data gathered from various stakeholders and the literature. We found that Florida farmers have done remarkably well by adapting to warming temperatures and changing consumer expectations about environmental sustainability and responsible labor practices. However, foreign competition, labor shortage, the rising costs of inputs, extreme weather events (hurricanes), and pests and diseases due to humid climate continue to affect the sustainability of the Florida tomato production. Our paper suggests various farm-, market-, and institution-level adaptation mechanisms for preventing the regional production advantage of the Florida tomato industry from eroding. Newer immigration laws are necessary for easing the labor situation. In order to have a level playing field with respect to the use of protected agriculture technology such as in Mexico and Canada, U.S. farmers in general and Florida farmers in particular need government support. Florida farmers need to diversify their fresh produce market strategies, finding new product streams. There is also a need for reforming the product certification landscape, which some growers find cumbersome and cost prohibitive. Growers may gain from being better able to convey to consumers the information regarding their effort put into environmental sustainability, workers welfare, and safe food.

Florida says no to aldicarb on citrus

Citrus growers in Florida cannot use the pesticide aldicarb to combat citrus greening caused by the Asian citrus psyllid, the state announced April 21 . The decision reverses a last-minute approval by the Trump administration allowing use of the chemical on citrus crops in Florida under federal law . The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services denied the request from pesticide maker AgLogic Chemical to register aldicarb for use on citrus in the state, claiming that the chemical poses unacceptable health risks to humans, wildlife, and the environment. Aldicarb, an older carbamate insecticide, “is one of the world’s most toxic pesticides and is banned in more than 100 countries,” Nikki Fried, Florida’s agriculture commissioner, says in a statement. The US Environmental Protection Agency declared in 2010 that aldicarb may pose health risks to infants and young children. At the time, Bayer Crop Science agreed to immediately stop selling it

Validation of a Decision Support System for Blueberry Anthracnose and Fungicide Sensitivity of Colletotrichum gloeosporioides Isolates.

Blueberry is an increasingly important crop in Florida. Anthracnose fruit rot (AFR), caused mostly by Colletotrichum gloeosporioides, is favored by long wetness periods and temperatures from 15 to 27°C. Currently, the model in the Strawberry Advisory System (StAS) guides fungicide applications targeting strawberry AFR. Given the similarity between blueberry and strawberry AFR, we hypothesized that the model used in StAS could be used in a decision support system (DSS) built for blueberry AFR. There is no information on inhibition posed by fungicides on C. gloeosporioides isolates from blueberry. Our objectives were to demonstrate that the model used in the StAS could be used for blueberry AFR management in Florida and to assess the sensitivity of isolates to fungicides. Four trials were undertaken in blueberry fields in Florida during two seasons to compare the effectiveness of fungicide applications according to the model with that of the growers' standard calendar. Sensitivity of blueberry C. gloeosporioides isolates to azoxystrobin, benzovindiflupyr, penthiopyrad, pydiflumetofen, boscalid, thiophanate-methyl, fluazinam, and fludioxonil was evaluated. AFR incidence and yield were compared between treatments. Following recommendations from the model resulted in disease control as effective as the standard program and in some cases with fewer applications. All isolates were sensitive to benzovindiflupyr, penthiopyrad, fluazinam, and fludioxonil. Low frequency of in vitro inhibition of isolates by azoxystrobin, pydiflumetofen, boscalid, and thiophanate-methyl should raise concern about fungicide resistance. Our results indicate that the model used in StAS could be used in a DSS to help Florida growers to manage AFR in blueberry.

Áfido del algodón Aphis gossypii / Áfido del algodón, ciclo de vida

The cotton or melon aphid is a serious pest of many horticultural crops in Florida. This Spanish language fact sheet aids in its identification.

Mosca blanca, Bemisia tabaci / Mosca blanca, ciclo de vida

Bemisia tabaci, the sweetpotato whitefly, is a serious pest of many horticultural, agronomic and ornamental crops in Florida. This fact sheet aids with identification of the pest.