Growth Spurts

A new early summertime peach variety, called Gulfcrimson, has been released to nurseries by the Agricultural Research Service (ARS).
Gulfcrimson requires just 400 hours of chilling to flower and set fruit. By comparison, a commonly grown variety called June Gold requires 650 hours of chilling.  As wintertime temperatures are trending warmer, with fewer chilling hours, growers [...]

Although lettuce is highly perishable and cutting shortens its shelf life, cutting and packaging the greens for food service and salad mixes is an increasingly important component of the produce industry.
The growing demand for convenient, pre-cut salads and lettuce has led to scientists to search for ways to select lettuce cultivars that stay fresh, colorful, [...]

A devastating tropical and subtropical pest, the silverleaf whitefly (Bemisia tabaci), threatens a wide range of crops and is becoming more troublesome.
Of the more than 20 known whitefly biotypes, the most devastating are labeled type B and and type Q. While the B type has been in the U.S. since its discovery in 1985, now [...]

Agricultural Research Service (ARS) entomologist David A. Jenkins has found a low-tech solution for reducing fruit fly infestations in mangoes.
Removing the fruit from the shade of trees appears to reduce fruit fly breeding opportunities.
In a recent study conducted at the ARS Tropical Agricultural Research Station in Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, Jenkins and colleagues collected ripe mangoes [...]