Madeline Mellinger had only about a year of experience working with growers in the Everglades Agricultural Area when they asked her to serve as their adviser on pest management. During that year she had established their trust through consistent and accurate advice dispensed in person over the course of seven-day, 1,200-mile workweeks. Mellinger was the growers’…
Alligatorweed (Alternanthera philoxeroides) is a common invasive plant that has plagued our state for well over 100 years. Native to Brazil, Paraguay, Argentina, and Uruguay, this plant was accidentally introduced to the Florida gulf coast in 1894 from ship ballast water. Along with water hyacinth (Eichornia crassipes), it was one of the original invaders of Florida and today…