2014 National Sustainable Strawberry Initiative Project Leader Meeting

1. Organic Open-field and High Tunnel
Strawberry Cropping Systems
for Long-term Viability of the
Southeastern Industry
Carlene Chase, Xin Zhao, Oscar Liburd,
Zhifeng Gao, Mickie Swisher, & Sanjun Gu

2. University of Florida
Carlene Chase
Weed Scientist
Xin Zhao
Horticulturist
Oscar Liburd
Entomologist
Mickie Swisher, Director
Center for Sustainable and
Organic Food Systems
Zhifeng Gao
Economist

3. Collaborators
Sanjun Gu
Horticulture Specialist
Marty Mesh
Executive Director
Sambhav
Applied Research Manager

4. The long-term goal
 Expansion of organic strawberry production in
the SE US beginning with Florida & N. Carolina
 Focus: open-field and high tunnel systems
 Environmentally & economically sustainable
 Resilient to weeds, pests, and diseases

5. Assess the use of off-season cover crops for
weed and nematode suppression
Sunn hemp
Hairy indigo
Jointvetch
Short-flower
rattlebox
PI - Carlene Chase

6. Cover Crop Performance
 Sunn hemp & hairy indigo
have greater potential for
biomass production and
weed suppression.
 Stakeholders requested
more research with these
2 species.
 Stakeholders recommend
cover crops that also give
a marketable product.
Weed biomass suppression
cc c
a
b
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7. Conference Posters and Presentations
 Cover crops for organic strawberry cropping
systems. Weed Science Society of America
2014
 Going organic to diversify and sustain the
strawberry industry. Florida State Horticultural
Society (FSHS) 2014
 Engaging stakeholders to refine research
objectives for grant proposals. American
Society for Horticultural Science (ASHS) 2014

8. Assess the performance of commercial strawberry
cultivars & advanced selections in organic systems
Citra
Plant City
High tunnel
(Citra)
Co-PI: Xin Zhao

9. ‘Albion’, ‘Camarosa’, ‘Strawberry Festival’, ‘Florida Radiance’,
‘Winterstar’, ‘Treasure’, ‘Proprietary #1’, & ‘Proprietary # 2’
2 advanced selections and
‘Florida Sensation’ in high tunnel
8 commercial strawberry cultivars evaluated in high
tunnel and open-field systems for plant growth, fruit
yield and quality

10. Almost all the cultivars showed
higher total marketable yields in the
high tunnel than in the open field.
‘Albion’ in open field
(Feb. 17, 2014, Citra)
‘Albion’ in high tunnel
(Feb. 17, 2014 Citra)
 The magnitude of the impact of high tunnel on fruit
yield differed among cultivars.
 Fruit quality attribute differences between cultivars
also varied with the production system.

11. Spider mites
Powdery
Mildew
Production problems differed in high tunnel
and open-field systems
High tunnel Open-field
Fruit rot
Fruit cracking

12. Yield performance of strawberry cultivars under
organic production in high tunnel and open field
(FSHS 2014 Annual Conference)
High tunnel production of organic strawberry in
northern Florida: opportunities and challenges
(ASHS 2014 Annual Conference)
Presentations

13. Biological control of twospotted spider mites
Neoseiulus californicus
Twospotted
spider mite
Co-PI: Oscar Liburd

14. Sampling for twospotted spider mites

15. Bigeyed bug, Geocoris spp. Minute pirate bug, Orius spp.
Beneficial insects recorded in strawberries
Hemiptera
AnthocoridaeLygaeidae
Thripidae
Sixspotted thrips
Scolothrips sexmaculatus

16. Monitoring for spotted wing drosophila (SWD)

17. Training growers to identify SWD

18. Strawberry injury resulting from
Neopamera bilobata (Say)

19. Presentation
Abundance of insect pests and mites
on strawberry varieties grown in high
tunnel and open field.
FSHS 2014 Conference

20. Assess consumer preferences for tangible and
intangible qualities of strawberries and consumer
willingness to pay for these traits
Obj. A
• Assess consumer
preference and WTP
for tangible attributes
Activity
• Sensory test with
strawberry cultivars
Status
• Statistical analysis
was conducted
Obj. B
• Assess consumer
preference & WTP for
intangible attributes
Activity
• National online
survey
Status
• Online survey is
complete and ready
for distribution
Co-PI: Zhifeng Gao

21. 100 participants were recruited, 50 with local
information (strawberries produced within 100 mi),
and 50 without this information
Participants rated 3
boxes of strawberries
for color, freshness,
shape and uniformity
Participants tasted
strawberries and
rated flavor & texture
WTP for 3 strawberry cultivars was assessed before and
after tasting

22. Take home messages
Only color matters for purchase before tasting/
purchasing strawberries.
After tasting/purchasing, only flavor and texture
matter.
Local information does not matter at all in
consumer choice of berries.
Implications for breeder, producer, and
marketing??

23. Presentation
Does Local Label Bias Consumer Taste Bud
and Choice Behavior: Evidence of a
Strawberry Sensory Experiment
(ASHS 2014 Annual Conference)

24. High tunnel cultivar evaluation
in Greensboro, NC. Co-PI: Sanjun Gu
10/08/2013

25. High tunnel in Greensboro, NC collapsed
due to snow accumulation in February

26. Field day at Hickory, NC – April 15

27. High tunnel workshop on 3/3/2014
Gu presented on Fall strawberry production

28. Stakeholder Assessment of Research
Co-PI: Mickie Swisher
 Growers, extension agents, strawberry breeder,
Driscoll’s
 3 assessments:
Southern Sustainable Agricultural Working Group
conference, Mobile AL

29. High Tunnel Stakeholder Assessment at Citra

30. Open-field Stakeholder Assessment
 On-station at Citra
 On-farm in Plant City

31. Extension and Outreach
 Short videos of the research will be released to the
UF IFAS website, YouTube, & extension training
venues.
 Professional presentations of results to researchers,
extension agents, and growers.
 Publication of results in refereed research journals,
conference proceedings and industry publications.

32. Strawberry industry leadership outcomes
1. Understand the potential impacts of the factors
assessed in this research on profitability and the
environment.
2. Better able to provide long-term guidance for
research and extension programs about organic
strawberry production.
3. Committed to continued involvement in future
research and outreach programs with an
organic focus.

33. Strawberry industry leadership outcomes
4. Assumed active roles in promoting research and
outreach efforts about organic strawberry
production.
5. Identified experimental practices most likely to
reduce costs of production and increase
profitability for producers.

34. Economic Sustainability
 High tunnel production system that is a potentially
viable option to expand fall organic strawberry
production in the Southeast.
 Identified emerging and existing pests that pose
high potential threats to organic strawberry
production systems.
 Identified, through grower input, ways to improve
the economic viability of using cover crops to
suppress weeds and nematodes and comply with
this requirement of the National Organic
Standards.

35. Social Sustainability
 Involvement of Extension faculty members,
other local service providers, and growers.
 Inclusion of representatives of and
professionals who work with limited resource
and minority farmers, such as the Black
Farmers and Agriculturalists’ Association.
 Expansion of the grower community involved
in research and extension programs
addressing organic strawberry production.

36. Environmental Sustainability
Identified potential technologies & management
practices that are economically feasible to
control arthropod pests, weeds and nematodes.
Applicable to organic strawberry systems, but
have potential applicability in conventional
systems as well.

37. Acknowledgments
This project is funded by a grant from the
Walmart Foundation and administered by the
University of Arkansas System Division of
Agriculture Center for Agricultural and Rural
Sustainability.