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Full-Text Articles in Agronomy and Crop Sciences
Developing Sustainable Soil Building Strategies For Tropical Fruit Groves Within The South Florida Redland, Ariel Freidenreich
Developing Sustainable Soil Building Strategies For Tropical Fruit Groves Within The South Florida Redland, Ariel Freidenreich
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Tropical fruit production has become a lucrative industry in Miami-Dade County. Consequently, developing sustainable farming practices to be applied to these systems to ensure healthy soils and economically viable fruit production is becoming increasingly important. The study is focused on the incorporation of cover cropping as a management strategy for perennial tropical fruit production and its applications for local growers. Cover crops are plants that are grown to cover soil to reduce erosion, increase soil fertility, and enhance farmland biodiversity. The project was specifically designed to test the impacts of highly prolific legumes sunn hemp (Crotalaria juncea) and …
Influence Of Vermicompost Tea On Secondary Metabolites In Solanum Lycopersicum Within South Florida, Daphne K. Sugino Souffront
Influence Of Vermicompost Tea On Secondary Metabolites In Solanum Lycopersicum Within South Florida, Daphne K. Sugino Souffront
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Fresh Market Tomatoes provide a high revenue stream for Florida’s agricultural sector. To attain profitable yields, farmers introduce high inputs of pesticides to suppress pest invasion/damage. Heavy usage of pesticides has adverse effects on human and environmental health. A possible solution might be the incorporation of vermicompost in pest management. Typically used as a fertilizer, vermicompost has pest suppressant properties. Mechanisms influencing enhanced pest resistance are unknown. To identify such mechanisms, a study was conducted to evaluate physical and chemical changes of the BHN589 tomato plant following the addition of varying vermicompost tea treatments (T5%, T10%, and T20%) . Results …
Effects Of Host-Plant Density On Herbivores And Their Parasitoids: A Field Experiment With A Native Perennial Legume, Andrea Salas
Effects Of Host-Plant Density On Herbivores And Their Parasitoids: A Field Experiment With A Native Perennial Legume, Andrea Salas
FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Senna mexicana chapmanii (Fabaceae: Caesalpinoideae), an attractive and threatened species native to pine rocklands of southern Florida, is consumed by folivorous caterpillars of Sulfur butterflies (Lepidoptera: Pieridae). Caterpillars may be deterred or eaten by predators, but also very important are parasitoids, both flies and wasps. This study investigated the effects of plant density on Sulfur caterpillar numbers and rates of parasitization.
Senna mexicana chapmanii plantations were established at agricultural and urban areas; both sites are adjacent to protected pine rockland areas. Sulfur butterfly immature stages were collected and reared to glean information regarding number of herbivores and rates of parasitization. …