Strawberry, Blackberry, Muscadine Researchers Awarded Specialty Crop Block Grants
$336,560 awarded by USDA through Arkansas Department of Agriculture
By John Lovett – Nov. 6, 2025
SPECIALTY CROP — Funding support for research on an emerging disease in Arkansas-grown strawberries is part of the recent Specialty Crop Block Grants awarded to the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture. (UofA System Division of Agriculture photo)
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — That first bite into an Arkansas-grown strawberry, blackberry or muscadine grape has a lot of research behind it by scientists with the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture.
With that research comes the need for funding to pay for materials, labor, travel and outreach to share the findings and recommendations with specialty crop growers.
Researchers with the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the research and outreach arms of the Division of Agriculture, recently secured funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Specialty Crop Block Program administered through the Arkansas Department of Agriculture for the following projects:
- Developing best management practices for Neopestalotiopsis, an emerging strawberry disease, and providing growers with research-based control guidance.
- Evaluating an annual blackberry production system to determine its commercial feasibility and share results with growers.
- Supporting the growth of the fresh-market muscadine grape industry through on-farm evaluations, pest-management research, and outreach for growers.
Strawberry monster
Impacting Florida strawberries first in 2019, the disease spread across the Southeast and made its way to Arkansas by 2021. Research has confirmed, Cato said, that it is a new, more aggressive species of NeoP not previously described in strawberries. It attacks the leaves, fruit and the crown of strawberry plants and can kill plants even before fruit is produced, he added.
While scientists initially thought that hot weather paired with intense rainfall led to NeoP outbreaks, Cato said more recent findings suggest the optimum temperature for development is 68 degrees Fahrenheit and symptoms have been observed as low as 41 degrees with 48 hours of continuous leaf wetness.
“There are a lot of growers doing well, but we want to keep it that way,” Cato said of the research support. “Strawberries are a high-value and widely adapted fruit crop that support rural economies and communities across Arkansas.”
The grant will help Cato and Amanda McWhirt, an associate professor of horticulture and extension fruit and vegetable specialist for the Division of Agriculture, develop best management practices tailored to Arkansas strawberry growers. Research so far on this new species of Neo. P has “focused on production in regions which differ greatly from Arkansas,” Cato said.
Cato and McWhirt will research several facets of an integrated pest management program, including varietal resistance, long-term cultural controls and effective fungicide rotations.
They also plan to collaborate with two major Arkansas berry farmers in Rudy and Judsonia. Once recommendations are developed, educational materials will be distributed to all Arkansas and Midsouth growers through several forms of outreach including through the Mid-American Strawberry Growers Association.
Blackberries year-round
ANNUAL SYSTEM — Blackberries grown in an annual system involves growing primocane varieties which can yield fruit in a single growing season. (UofA System Division of Agriculture photo)
Ryan Dickson, an associate professor of horticulture for the experiment station, received support from the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program for his research on growing annual blackberry plants in containers. Dickson also serves in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences at the University of Arkansas.
The annual blackberry system involves growing primocane varieties, which can yield fruit in a single growing season, in containers and soilless substrates instead of field soil. The technique has already been adopted in strawberry, blueberry and raspberry, but has not been extensively researched in blackberry, Dickson noted.
With the Arkansas Fruit Breeding Program’s development of early and high-yielding annual varieties adapted to Arkansas’ climate, the annual and soilless production systems have the potential to create cropping advantage for Arkansas growers with harvests in the off-season when premiums for growers are possible.
As a potential side benefit, Dickson said the annual and soilless system may help counteract problems imposed by fusarium, a soilborne disease that has become a threat to the local blackberry industry.
As part of his research, Dickson is determining the impacts of planting date, cane tipping and shade on yield and quality. He also plans to track costs to estimate the potential cost benefits of growing blackberries with the system. Results of the research will be presented at a future Arkansas Grown Conference and Arkansas Blackberry Field Day at the experiment station’s Fruit Research Station in Clarksville.
Muscadine time
ANNUAL SYSTEM — Blackberries grown in an annual system involves growing primocane varieties which can yield fruit in a single growing season. (UofA System Division of Agriculture photo)
MUSCADINES — Research is being supported on pest-management recommendations for 15 muscadine and muscadine hybrids as part of recent Specialty Crop Block Grant awards in Arkansas. (UofA System Division of Agriculture photo)
Muscadine grapevines are native to the Southeast and are grown commercially for juice, wine and table grapes, also known as fresh-market grapes. While resistant to many serious pests and diseases that cause problems for the more standard Vitis vinifera grapes grown worldwide, traditional muscadines have thick skins, gummy flesh and seeds that have limited popular acceptance as a table grape.
However, muscadine grapes are a “unique treasure of the Southeast — naturally resilient, richly flavorful and packed with health-promoting compounds,” said Renee Threlfall, an associate professor of food science with a focus on enology and viticulture for the Division of Agriculture and Bumpers College.
“Through collaborations with Arkansas growers and the establishment of statewide trials, we’re laying the groundwork for a thriving fresh muscadine industry in Arkansas,” Threlfall said. “With continued research and grower engagement, muscadines could become one of the state’s most distinctive and sustainable fresh-market and processing fruit crops.”
The Specialty Crop Block Grant awarded to Threlfall and McWhirt will support development of pest-management recommendations based on their initial observations of the 15 muscadine and muscadine hybrids that have been planted so far to produce fresh-market grapes.
“These efforts will expand fresh-market muscadine grape production in Arkansas and increase the availability of this healthy, native grape,” Threlfall said.
Threlfall is also co-director of a national program to breed muscadines with Vitis vinifera grapes to develop new muscadine and muscadine hybrid cultivars with thinner skins, seedlessness and fresh-market quality. Margaret Worthington, associate professor of horticulture and director of the Arkansas Fruit Breeding Program for the experiment station, is the other co-director of the program.
Competitive process
The Arkansas Department of Agriculture selected six projects to receive a total of $336,560 in funding through the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program.
“These projects reflect the innovation and collaboration that continue to move Arkansas’s specialty crop industry forward,” Arkansas Secretary of Agriculture Wes Ward said in an Oct. 28 news release. “We’re proud to administer this program in Arkansas and support research and marketing efforts that help producers grow their operations and bring more Arkansas-grown products to consumers.”
The Department of Agriculture received applications requesting more than $1.79 million in total funding, reflecting a highly competitive selection process, the release added. Projects were evaluated and selected by a review panel of industry representatives and experts based on purpose, measurable outcomes, implementation plans and budget.
Other projects selected for funding this year include:
- Arkansas Blackberry Growers Association: Promoting Arkansas-grown blackberries through social media campaigns and promotional events to increase consumer awareness and sales.
- Arkansas Department of Agriculture: Expanding opportunities for Arkansas specialty crop and value-added producers to connect with buyers and expand their market reach.
- Arkansas Pecan Growers Association: Developing a statewide marketing plan, website, and promotional materials to help pecan growers expand wholesale and retail partnerships.
Learn more about the Specialty Crop Block Grant Program on USDA’s website.
To learn more about the Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website. Follow us on 𝕏 at @ArkAgResearch, subscribe to the Food, Farms and Forests podcast and sign up for our monthly newsletter, the Arkansas Agricultural Research Report. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit uada.edu. Follow us on 𝕏 at @AgInArk. To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit uaex.uada.edu.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on three campuses.
Pursuant to 7 CFR § 15.3, the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services (including employment) without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual preference, pregnancy or any other legally protected status, and is an equal opportunity institution.
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