A monthly round-up of top stories from the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station. IN THIS ISSUE: Through the Grapevine: Great things are in store for grapes, Two fields of study combine to form foundational science on forest and stream health, Find out who was named…
Larry Purcell might be the most highly educated and scientifically cited bicycle mechanic in America. With certainty, the recently retired Distinguished Professor of crop physiology for the UADA has the admiration of Southern soybean breeders…
Sami Dridi, professor of poultry science, was recognized with the American Feed Industry Association Poultry Nutrition Research Award and the National Chicken Council Broiler Research Award at the 2024 Annual Meeting…
Food safety and nutrition are essential, but taste often drives what we choose to eat. Assistant professor of food science and flavor chemist Scott Lafontaine evaluates and enhances flavors by investigating the chemical drivers…
As trees begin changing colors this fall, a new generation of red oaks will be planted on 40 acres in eastern Arkansas, just a small part of a project that aims to re-establish 600 acres of hardwood forests in the state over the next three to five years…
Whether it’s a football field, a golf course, or a home lawn, a new multi-state study offers recommendations for keeping some varieties of turfgrass greener, longer. Researchers currently based in six states collaborated…
Riparian zones, the areas where forests and streams meet, are intimately connected. Yet a holistic understanding about these zones is lacking because such work requires a combination of aquatic and terrestrial sciences. That is soon to change with the help of a nearly $1 million National Science Foundation grant…
Have you ever stood in front of apples on display at the grocery store trying to pick out the best ones and wondered, “Is there an app for this?” Current machine-learning based computer models used for predicting food quality…
Increasing funding for land-grant work in Arkansas agriculture may take some persuasion, considering how few legislators have ties to agriculture or understand the UADA’s impact in every Arkansas county…
We explore the Restoring Bottomland Hardwood Forests project with principal investigator Dr. Nana Tian. Planting begins this fall, and over the next 3 to 5 years, this project aims to restore approximately 600 acres of Arkansas bottomland forests by planting oak species and other hardwoods…
There is no shortage of challenges for the food system. From changes in policy to new food technologies, consumers and producers can have a lot to worry about. To consumer economics researcher Brandon McFadden…
Many things in farming could be considered a gamble, including the weather and pest management, but locking in a price on at least some of the crop doesn’t have to be. Andrew McKenzie said corn and bean farmers considering…
In honor of her 35 years of dedication to research and education, Gisela Erf, endowed professor of avian immunology, was recognized as a Fellow of the Poultry Science Association at the 2024 Annual Meeting in Louisville, Kentucky…
Today’s meat chickens were bred to grow faster with higher feed conversion ratios, but that also makes chicken house climate control even more important. Demand for better climate control, especially ventilation…
With Arkansas’ multibillion-dollar forestry industry to defend, forest health researcher Laura Sims has been named director of the recently announced $16.8 million Arkansas Forest Health Research Center based at the University of Arkansas at Monticello.
Muscadines may be the folksy American of the grape world, but they have many qualities like disease resistance and unique flavors that are desired in the more popular Vitis vinifera (bunch grapes) species…
Dr. Michael Blazier, Dean of the College of Forestry, Agriculture, and Natural Resources at the University of Arkansas at Monticello, discusses the Restoring Bottomland Hardwood Forests project, a $3.7 million initiative that plans to convert idle farmland into thriving ecosystems…
Behind the scenes of modern agricultural research are the statisticians who help make sense of the data and guide the design of the studies before they even start. Samantha Robinson, an associate professor of statistics and data science…
Joanna Fiddler, whose research focuses on the role of micronutrients in maintaining health, joined the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences and the UADA as an assistant professor of human nutrition and dietetics in August…
“When something happens once a century, it’s pretty special.” That’s how University of Arkansas System Trustee Steve Cox spoke of the opening of the Northeast Rice Research and Extension Center, the first new Arkansas land-grant rice research and extension center in 100 years…
From deli counters to dinner tables, food safety relies on careful research and strict sanitation. As a multistate Listeria monocytogenes outbreak linked to deli meats raises concerns, researchers continue to work behind the scenes to ensure food safety standards…
A new machine-learning model for predicting crop yield using environmental data and genetic information can be used to develop new, higher-performing crop varieties. Igor Fernandes, a statistics and analytics master’s student at the University of Arkansas…
While surges in colds, flu and even COVID may come and go, agricultural producers are always on the lookout for avian influenza — and not just in poultry flocks. In 2024, highly pathogenic avian influenza has been detected not only in birds, but cattle, swine and humans as well…
A monthly round-up of top stories from the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station. IN THIS ISSUE: Hydroponics and controlled environment research to control pests and pathogens, Getting a closer look at the state’s forests, Generative AI and agriculture meet in the classroom…
Every day, most of us walk through — and on top of — incredible worlds that we don’t even know exist. Natalie Clay studies these hidden worlds with an aim to understand the insect and plant interactions in forest ecosystems…