News & Updates

Lichens on Fruit Trees: Control and Management Strategies

Introduction: Lichens are organisms that often go unnoticed, yet they play a significant role in the ecosystem, including fruit orchards. These symbiotic unions between fungi and algae, or cyanobacteria, form crust-like structures on tree bark, providing important ecological services. While lichens are generally harmless, their presence on fruit trees can raise concerns among tree growers.…

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Pre-emergence Herbicides- Prevention Better than Cure

Have you ever felt frustrated by seeing weeds growing in your lawn? Every spring, you apply so many gallons of herbicides; the weeds go away briefly, and suddenly, they return. Winter weeds, such as Florida Snow (Florida Pusley), decorate your yard with white flowers. As the old saying goes, an ounce of prevention is better…

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Go Red for Women Day: Empowering Hearts Everywhere

In the fight against heart disease, Go Red for Women Day has emerged as a powerful campaign to raise awareness and promote heart health among women. Historically, heart disease has primarily been seen as a “men’s” disease, often overshadowing the reality that women are equally susceptible to its devastating effects. So, let’s look at the misconceptions surrounding…

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UF/IFAS study offers critical insights to encourage sustainable agriculture, protect Florida grasslands, wetlands

The term ‘sustainable agriculture’ involves boosting food production while conserving habitats and natural resources and reducing reliance on pesticides and fertilizers. While experts agree there is still much to learn to support its potential, they say sustainable agriculture models could promote food security, regulate climate change, promote biodiversity, improve water quality and more. …

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How It Happened: FSGA & UF/IFAS’ Game-Changing Partnership for Strawberry Industry

Cultivating Florida’s Strawberry Legacy In the heart of Florida’s strawberry fields, the partnership between the Florida Strawberry Growers Association (FSGA) and the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Science (UF/IFAS) has not only nurtured thriving strawberry crops, but has sown seeds of innovation, philanthropy, and industrywide impact. As far back as the early 1950s, UF/IFAS scientists have been…

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Captivating Carnivorous Plants of Central Florida

Plants that grow in tropical environments (such as Florida) are faced with nutrient deficient soils.  Many of the swamps and bogs, wet flatwoods, and even dry mesic flatlands are poor in Nitrogen and Phosphorus. These elements are essential for growth.   Luckily these areas are also home to many insects which are rich sources of Nitrogen,…

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Attracting Florida Butterflies

Arguably the most popular insect in our landscape, Butterflies are beloved by all.  Now everyone can easily start a Butterfly Garden to attract and raise butterflies … guaranteed!  Here are two easy steps on How to Attract Butterflies and keep them coming to visit your garden. Adult Nectar Source. Adult butterflies feed mostly on nectar and…

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Salvias for Your Florida Garden

What better way to add color into your Florida Garden than to include the versatile Salvia.  This is one of the largest genera of flowering plants with a thousand species worldwide.  Salvias will grow in full sun to shade, sandy soil to mucky soil, in ground or in containers.  And, Salvias are fast growing, flower…

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Succulents

What makes a plant a succulent? Succulents are plants with the ability to hold water in their thick, fleshy tissue. Water storage can occur in leaves or stems. A cactus holds water in the stem while a jade plant holds water mostly in the leaves. What are some types of succulents that grow well in…

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Managing House Geckos

 Introduction Among the ten species of geckos found in Florida, only one, the Florida Reef Gecko (Sphaerodactylus notatus), is native to the state, the additional ten non-native species found in the state having arrived in cargo or via the pet trade. Among them are the Mediterranean Gecko (Hemidactylus turcicus) first identified in 1910 in Florida, the Tropical…

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