News Stories - Page 11

Professor David Bertioli and senior research scientist Soraya Leal-Bertioli work together with peanut plants in their greenhouses at the Center for Applied Genetic Technologies. CAES News
New peanut has a wild past and domesticated present
The wild relatives of modern peanut plants have the ability to withstand disease in ways that modern peanut plants can’t. The genetic diversity of these wild relatives means that they can shrug off the diseases that kill farmers’ peanut crops, but they also produce tiny nuts that are difficult to harvest because they burrow deep in the soil.
Three graduate students in the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CAES) have been honored with an E. Broadus Browne Award for Outstanding Graduate Research: plant pathology student Shaun Stice took first place in the Ph.D. category; Sam McDonald, a plant breeding, genetics and genomics student placed second in the Ph.D category; and plant pathology student Caroline Burks received first place in the master’s category. CAES News
Graduate students honored with research awards
Three graduate students in the University of Georgia College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences have been honored with an E. Broadus Browne Award for Outstanding Graduate Research.
Boxwood blight symptoms clockwise from upper left: tan to gray leaf lesions with a darker purplish border on an English boxwood; circular, tan spots with a brown border on upper leaves; tan blighted leaves and bare stems on an infected plant; blackening of stems and browning foliage; and black stem lesions on bare branch tips. (photos by Jean Williams-Woodward) CAES News
Wet weather can cause influx of disease to evergreens
If you're seeing brown areas in your landscape trees or hedges where you should be seeing green, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension can help. Wet winters and severe weather have been causing disease and other issues in landscape plants, especially Leyland cypress and boxwood.
Postharvest blueberries were tested under blue light to determine whether the light affected fruit quality or disease development. CAES News
UGA researchers investigate blue light to increase blueberry quality and fight disease
The COVID-19 crisis has put supply chain issues at the forefront of food production and packaging concerns. Researchers at the University of Georgia investigated a potential solution for extending the shelf life of blueberries by exposing blueberries to blue light during storage.
Watermelon research at the UGA-Tifton campus. CAES News
New rapid test for watermelon disease
Fusarium wilt, caused by a soilborne fungus, is one of the most damaging diseases of watermelons worldwide. Since it was discovered in 1894, it’s been a battle for producers to manage through crop rotation and chemical fungicides.
FABricate is an entrepreneurial pitch contest hosted by the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. Proposals are due Feb. 20 for the 2021 contest. CAES News
Entrepreneurial competition accepting proposals for $10,000 prize
It’s not too late for University of Georgia students to turn their novel ideas into a chance at a grand prize of $10,000.