Newsline for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

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IN THIS NEWSLINE ISSUED February 20, 2008:

  1. FIRST DOCUMENTED CASE OF PEST RESISTANCE TO BIOTECH COTTON
  2. PROJECT BUDBURST
  3. JOIN THE PROJECT BUDBURST CITIZEN SCIENCE CAMPAIGN
  4. SHARON MEGDAL AWARDED ENDOWED PROFESSORSHIP
  5. BACKYARDS AND BEYOND: A STATEWIDE EXTENSION MAGAZINE
  6. GRADUATE OPTION IN CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENT AGRICULTURE
  7. ASSESSING DONENESS IN COOKED GROUND BEEF
  8. US-MEXICO TRANSBOUNDARY AQUIFER ASSESSMENT PROGRAM
  9. CALS IN THE NEWS

1 FIRST DOCUMENTED CASE OF PEST RESISTANCE TO BIOTECH COTTON

A pest insect known as bollworm is the first to evolve resistance in the field to plants modified to produce an insecticide called Bt, according to a new research report by University of Arizona entomologists.

Bt-resistant populations of bollworm, Helicoverpa zea, were found in more than a dozen crop fields in Mississippi and Arkansas between 2003 and 2006.

"What we're seeing is evolution in action," said lead researcher Bruce Tabashnik, professor and head of the UA entomology department and an expert in insect resistance to insecticides. "This is the first documented case of field-evolved resistance to a Bt crop."

Bt crops are so named because they have been genetically altered to produce Bt toxins, which kill some insects. The toxins are produced in nature by the widespread bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis, hence the abbreviation Bt.

Bruce Tabashnik, Department of Entomology, brucet@ag.arizona.edu

To learn more:
http://uanews.org/node/18178

2 PROJECT BUDBURST

Biologists refer to the timing of seasonal events such as flowering or the first unfurling of leaves as "phenology." Humans have used such well-known clues to the onset of spring for centuries. Phenological patterns can help time the planting of crops or flowers, track the effect of climate change on plants and animals, anticipate wildflower displays and make predictions about fuel loads and wildfires.

To learn more about large-scale changes in plants' behavior over time, it is essential that the date and location of phenological events like "first leaf" and "first fruit" be observed and recorded for many different plants in as many locations as possible across the country. So Project BudBurst, a nationwide project enlisting adults and youth to track when plants leaf out and bloom, was created. Similar projects have been going on in Europe for years and have offered clues into how plants are responding to warming global temperatures.

Barron Orr, Office of Arid Lands Studies, barron@email.arizona.edu

To learn more:
http://cals.arizona.edu/landandpeople/fall2007/article8.pdf

3 JOIN THE PROJECT BUDBURST CITIZEN SCIENCE CAMPAIGN

Project BudBurst has launched its 2008 Citizen Science Campaign. Starting this week, citizen-scientist volunteers from across the country will be able to help track trends in phenology (e.g., first leaf, first flower) on many different species and see how these relate to climate.

Last year's inaugural event drew thousands of people of all ages taking careful observations of the phenological events such as the first bud burst, first leafing, first flower, and seed or fruit dispersal of a diversity of tree and flower species, including weeds and ornamentals. The citizen science observations and records were entered into the BudBurst database.

Scientists are using the data to learn about the responses of individual plant species to local, regional and national climate variation, and to detect longer-term impacts of climate change by comparing the new observations with historical data.

For details on how to participate, see the link below.

Barron Orr, Office of Arid Lands Studies, barron@ag.arizona.edu,(520)626-8063

To learn more:
http://www.budburst.org

4 SHARON MEGDAL AWARDED ENDOWED PROFESSORSHIP

Sharon Megdal, director of the University of Arizona's Water Resources Research Center, has been named the first recipient of the new C.W. and Modene Neely Endowed Professorship for Excellence in Agriculture and Life Sciences.

The endowed professorship honors the late C.W. "Buck" Neely, a prominent cotton farmer and rancher in Gilbert, Arizona, and his wife Modene. A gift from the charitable foundation created in their names enables the UA College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) to recruit or retain a distinguished scholar in an endowed professorship to further critical research, teaching and extension in areas relating to water.

Megdal's work at the WRRC involves her in local, state, national and international programs, and includes academic, research and extension activities. Her long-term research interest is Arizona's artificial recharge program. As part of her academic activities, she teaches a graduate course in Arizona Water Policy, part of the new Graduate Certificate in Water Policy program. As teacher and advisor, she has demonstrated her commitment to university students.

Sharon Megdal, Water Resources Research Center, smegdal@ag.arizona.edu

To learn more:
http://cals.arizona.edu/azwater/director.php

5 BACKYARDS AND BEYOND: A STATEWIDE EXTENSION MAGAZINE

Arizona Cooperative Extension's magazine, Backyards and Beyond - Rural Living in Arizona, is targeted to small-acreage landowners and backyard enthusiasts throughout Arizona. Written entirely by Extension faculty, the current Winter 2007 issue features articles on wildlife, poultry, managing land and water sustainably, animal behavior, true mistletoes, Arizona climate trends and more.

The magazine is available online and in hard copy formats. See the link below for current and past issues, and for subscription information.

Susan Pater, Cochise County Cooperative Extension, spater@ag.arizona.edu

To learn more:
http://cals.arizona.edu/backyards/archive/index.html

6 GRADUATE OPTION IN CONTROLLED ENVIRONMENT AGRICULTURE

It's a long way from the steamy glasshouses of the 17th and 18th centuries: a controlled environment greenhouse today has environmental controls, sensors and computer systems that manage heating, cooling, light intensity, irrigation, humidity, fertilizer and other growth factors. These technologies are used in greenhouse industries worldwide to produce vegetable, fruit, herb and ornamental crops with a high degree of precision.

The University of Arizona's Controlled Environment Agriculture Center (CEAC) offers these same capabilities through specially equipped greenhouses on campus, where students like Myles Lewis can learn all aspects of crop production, from seedling management to crop protection, personnel management and marketing strategies.

After completing an undergraduate degree in plant sciences and working in the controlled environment greenhouses on campus, Lewis recently entered the Professional Sciences Master's program in Applied Biosciences, with the option in controlled environment agriculture.

"So far, it's the most rewarding thing I've done in my life," Lewis says. He chose this program because it emphasizes using the scientific knowledge he gained as an undergraduate, crossing over from academia to business.

Pat Rorabaugh, Controlled Environment Agriculture Center, patrora@ag.arizona.edu

To learn more:
http://cals.arizona.edu/landandpeople/fall2007/article2.pdf

7 ASSESSING DONENESS IN COOKED GROUND BEEF

Is it okay to eat a cooked hamburger that's pink in the middle? The majority of E. coli outbreaks since 1982 have been linked to undercooked ground beef. While this pathogen can survive both refrigeration and freezer storage, thorough cooking will kill it. Recently, the Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) of the USDA recommended consumers use a meat thermometer when cooking ground beef to assess doneness.

A new, one-page Cooperative Extension bulletin outlines the proper way to cook a hamburger. Print it out and keep a copy in your kitchen--or better yet, near the barbecue.

Evelyn Whitmer, Cooperative Extension, Cochise County, emarkee@ag.arizona.edu

To learn more:
http://cals.arizona.edu/pubs/health/az1439.pdf

8 US-MEXICO TRANSBOUNDARY AQUIFER ASSESSMENT PROGRAM

The Water Resources Research Center (WRRC) received good news from Washington D.C. with passage of the FY 08 omnibus appropriations bill: the budget for the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) included $500,000 in start-up funding for the new United States-Mexico Transboundary Aquifer Assessment Program.

The Program, authorized in Public Law 109-448 at the end of 2006, directs the USGS and the water resources institutes in the states of Arizona, New Mexico and Texas to develop and carry out a systematic assessment of priority transboundary aquifers, in collaboration with Mexican partners. The program is authorized for a total of 10 years, with a funding authorization of $50 million. The two priority transboundary aquifers specified for Arizona in the Act are the Santa Cruz River Valley aquifers and the San Pedro aquifers, underlying Arizona and Sonora, Mexico.

The WRRC is currently coordinating bi-national discussions to plan an integrated scientific approach for assessments of these priority aquifers, so as to make effective use of the federal dollars.

Sharon Megdal, Water Resources Research Center, smegdal@cals.arizona.edu

To learn more:
http://cals.arizona.edu/azwater/awr/janfeb08/leglaw.html

9 CALS IN THE NEWS

WINTER PRUNING: CUT BACK FOR NEW GROWTH
Many shrubs benefit from heavy pruning during the winter months.

Called "rejuvenation pruning," this method involves cutting back all stems and branches to a height of 12 to 18 inches above the ground. It's a great way to make older, overgrown or "leggy" shrubs smaller, fuller and more vigorous.

Rejuvenation pruning can be used on a number of shrubs, including Texas ranger, oleander, jojoba, greasewood, senna, ruellia, red- and blue-flowering salvia and hopbush.

To read more from this article that appeared in the Arizona Daily Star, see http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/printDS/225163

John Begeman, Pima County Cooperative Extension, jbegeman@ag.arizona.edu

ONLINE SURVEY TO LOOK AT FRESHMAN SPENDING
The UA launches an online survey today meant to uncover the financial behaviors of freshmen and give university officials insight into how to help curb risky habits.

The Arizona Pathways to Life Success for University Students survey targets freshmen because the first year is a transitional period that carries lots of new and potentially dangerous decisions, said Soyeon Shim, director of the UA's John and Doris Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences.

"It's a really good time for us to look at what attributes (lend) to their academic success, stress and physical well-being," Shim said. "We'll use the data as a baseline - where are we, and where do we go from here?"

Soyeon Shim, Norton School of Family and Consumer Sciences, shim@ag.arizona.edu

For the rest of the story from the Arizona Daily Wildcat see http://media.wildcat.arizona.edu/media/storage/paper997/news/2008/02/18/News/Online.Survey.To.Look.At.Freshman.Spending-3216321.shtml

To find out about available CALS publications and upcoming events, go to http://cals.arizona.edu/. If you have questions or comments about NewsLine, send an email to newseditor@ag.arizona.edu. Previous issues can be viewed at http://cals.arizona.edu/pubs/newsline/previous-issues.html

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