US (FL): Agricultural Research Center organizes open house

The University of Florida's Southwest Florida Research and Education Center held it's first open house for the public Friday at it's center north of Immokalee. Tours of the site were available to the public and a lunch was served by Immokalee students including "I-burgers," chicken, salads, chocolate chip cookies, and cake.

The center, now directed by Dr. Calvin E. Arnold was established in 1958 by Dr. Paul Everett and dedicated in 1986 as a UF/IFAS station on 320 acres serving citrus grower, farmers and the public for Collier, Glades, Hendry and Lee counties.

Dr. Everett developed plasiculture mulch, fertilization, and irrigation systems still in use today.

The site includes labs, the original 1955 buildings, dormitories for 15 visiting scholars and graduate students, a FAWN weather station, and test plots for citrus, peaches, sugar cane, and vegetables.

50 acres are devoted to vegetables, 80 acres in citrus, 100 acres for wildlife and 90 acres for buildings, roads, and a water reservoir.

What is believed to be the largest lysimeters in the U.S. are at the site, to measure field-scale water and nutrient dynamics.

Field tests are currently being done on genetically modified corn to evaluate effectiveness against fall armyworms and tomatoes are being grown to evaluate insecticides for control of whitefly and southern armyworms. Jalapeno peppers are grown for insecticide evaluation for pepper weevils.

Click here to read the complete article at swflorida.blogspot.nl