January 2003 Citrus Leaves - Citrus Research and Education Center

Citrus Leaves
Citrus Research and Education Center - News and Information
In This Issue
Employees Honored ......................... 1
Service Pins ...................................... 2
Citrus Leprosis Workshop ............... 3
Dr. Deng to Bradenton ...................... 3
Holiday photos ............................... 4-5
News Around CREC
Welcome, Farewell ........................... 6
Congratulations ................................ 6
Manuscripts Submitted ..................... 6
Upcoming Events .............................. 7
Calendar ........................................... 8
Citrus Leaves
is the monthly newsletter for
employees and friends of CREC.
Would you like to be in “Citrus
Leaves?” We welcome your
contributions, suggestions and
corrections. Editor, Monica
Lewandowski; E-mail
mmlew@lal.ufl.edu; Ext. 1233.
Photography, Gretchen Baut;
Production and Distribution: Word
Processing, Barbara Thompson,
Supervisor; Kathy Snyder, Karla
Flynn and Linda Murphy; Customer
Service, Kathy Witherington,
Supervisor, and Nancy Burke.
On the web: www.lal.ufl.edu and
click on News At CREC/CREC
Campus Newsletter
www.lal.ufl.edu
Dr. Harold W. Browning, Center Director
Citrus Research & Education Center
700 Experiment Station Road
Lake Alfred, FL 33850-2299
Tel. (863) 956-1151
Fax (863) 956-4631
CREC honored Angel Hoyte (top photo),
Gretchen Baut (middle left) and Gary Wilhite
(middle right) as 2002 Employees of the
Year, and the FDOC recognized Lura Rixman
and Bruce Robertson for
outstanding service at the
Centerwide meeting on Dec.
20.
Hoyte, Baut and
Wilhite each received a
plaque and gift certificate.
They were nominated
by supervisors
and/or faculty
and selected by
a committee
comprised of
past Employees
of the Year.
The awards are
presented
annually to
staff in Techni-
January 2003
Employees Honored in December
Hoyte, Baut and Wilhite Employees of the Year;
Rixman and Robertson Recognized for Service
Bruce Robertson (center), electrician in CREC’s
maintenance shop, is presented with a plaque and gift basket
for outstanding service by FDOC’s Dr. Joe Ahrens (left),
Scientific Research Director, and Eileen Hoobin.
Volume 21, No. 1
cal, Administrative/Clerical and Trades
categories. Faculty, students,
postdoctoral and visiting scientists are
not eligible for the awards.
Lura Rixman, who was
unable to attend the
Centerwide meeting, was
presented with a certificate
of appreciation and
gift basket by Dr. Andy
Laurent, FDOC Deputy
Executive Director of
Research and Development,
and Dr.
Joe Ahrens,
FDOC Scientific
Research
Director, on
the morning of
Dec. 20. She
is the receptionist
for the
See Employees, p. 2
Lura Rixman (center), receptionist for the
FDOC scientific staff, is presented with a
plaque and gift basket by Dr. Ahrens and Dr.
Andy Laurent (right), FDOC Deputy Exec.
Director of Research and Development.
CREC has entered a new telephone era! See page 6 for a brief
overview.

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Service Pins
Service pins for 5, 10, 15, 20 and 15 years of continuous service were presented at the CREC Centerwide meeting on Dec. 20 by Dale
Price (Personnel Office) and Center Director Harold Browning. Pictured below are current employees that received service pins.
25 years
Diann Achor
(Electron Microscopy
Lab, Manager)
10 years
Cecile Robertson
(Sr. Bio. Sci., Drs.
Dawson & Garnsey)
25 years
Bruce Robertson
(Sr. Electrician,
Maintenance Shop)
10 years
Kelly Morgan
(Sci. Res. Mgr.,
Conserv II )
FDOC staff. Dr. Ahrens also presented Bruce Robertson
with a certificate of appreciation and a gift basket at the
Centerwide meeting on Dec. 20. Robertson is an electrician
in CREC’s maintenance shop.
Technical Award - Angel Hoyte
20 years
Gary Barthe
(Sr. Bio. Sci.,
Dr. Derrick’s Lab)
5 years
Mike Armstrong
(Coordinator,
Computer Applic.)
Employees of the Year . . . from page 1
Angel Hoyte works with Dr. Clay McCoy. Angel is an
instrumental part of the Diaprepes root weevil project, and was
recognized for several projects, including her work in identifying
egg parasitoids of Diaprepes from field-collected material. She
has also conducted studies to define the mode of action of
second generation neonicotinoid insecticides against neonate
Diaprepes larva. This research is paving the way for further
research on the use of neonicotinoids as a pest management tool
for citrus growers. In addition, Angel works with Dr. Robin
Stuart on identifying ant predators of Diaprepes in the field. Her
many positive qualities include being hard-working, intelligent
and focused on her work.
Administrative/Clerical Award - Gretchen Baut
The CREC Employee of the Year committee selected two
Administrative/Clerical Employees of the Year, as there were no
nominees for the Trades category. Gretchen Baut, CREC
photographer/graphics artist, has played a primary role in
bringing CREC into the digital photography age. Her wide range
of services includes scientific and general photography, artwork
20 years
J.L. Chandler
(Sr. Bio. Sci.,
Dr. Grosser’s Lab)
5 years
Mauricio Rubio
(Lab technician,
Dr. Graham’s Lab)
15 years
Denise Dunn
(Sr. Bio. Sci.,
Dr. Duncan’s Lab)
and web design. She has established digital video capabilities at
CREC and frequently provides training and advice on digital
photography, photo-editing and other topics. In addition, she
keeps the PhotoLab equipment - several scanners, printers,
cameras and computers – up and running, and is constantly
learning new software and equipment to keep pace with current
technology. Gretchen blends her creativity and artistic talent
with computer and technical savvy to produce quality products
now used around the world.
Administrative/Clerical Award - Gary Wilhite
15 years
Diana Drouillard
(Sr. Bio. Sci.,
Dr. Graham’s Lab)
Not pictured:
15 years - Jimmy Willard
5 years - Prabahini “Pat” Paramasivam and
Tony Tesoriero
Also named Administrative/Clerical Employee of the Year was
Gary Wilhite, senior engineering technician in CREC’s
Information Support Department (ISD). A former CREC
Employee of the Year, Gary often works “behind the scenes” to
keep our computer network, telephone system and other critical
systems running smoothly. He played an instrumental role in the
installation and implementation of CREC’s new IP telephony
system and was involved in considerable training and research
for this massive project. Gary also “saved the day” last fall when
our old telephone system crashed. He determined the cause of
the failure and worked long hours to restore the system in just a
few days. The thorough records and notes that Gary had
maintained over the years provided critical information needed
to reprogram the phone system, saving days of additional work.

Citrus Leprosis Workshop
_
Over 60 scientists, including plant pathologists,
acarologists, entomologists and regulatory scientists
gathered at CREC for a workshop on the citrus leprosis
virus and its mite vector, Brevipalpus, on Dec. 4-5. Citrus
leprosis is not a problem in Florida but it is a major disease
of sweet oranges in South and Central America. The mite
vectors of the virus do occur in Florida, however, so there
is concern that the virus would spread if it were introduced
into our state. Among the topics of discussion were virus
and Brevipalpus biology, the disease situation in Brazil and other Central American countries and research needs.
Top left, a group photo of workshop participants; bottom right, Dr. Ron Brlansky (CREC), Dr. Ronald Ochoa (USDA-Agricultural
Research Service, Beltsville, Maryland), and Dr. Carl Childers (CREC), workshop organizer. Dr. Childers, who conducts research on
Brevipalpus and other mite pests, was the workshop organizer.
Dr. Zhanao Deng (left) with Dr. Fred
Gmitter (center) and wife, Ying Hong
Wang. Dr. Deng is now UF Assistant
Professor of Environmental Horticulture
at the Gulf Coast REC in
Bradenton.
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Above: Joel Floyd, USDA Animal Plant
and Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Plant
Protection and Quarantine in Riverdale,
Maryland leads a discussion.
New IFAS Faculty
Dr. Zhanao Deng, formerly an Assistant-In Citrus Molecular Genetics and Biology at
CREC with Dr. Fred Gmitter, assumed a new position as UF Assistant Professor of Environmental
Horticulture at the Gulf Coast Research and Education Center (GFREC) in
Bradenton. Dr. Deng will develop a horticulture, floriculture and breeding program that will
involve caladium and Gerbera daisy breeding and variety trials.
Dr. Deng received his B.S. from the Department of Horticulture at Sichuan Agricultural
University in China, and his M.S. and Ph.D. in horticulture from Huazong Agricultural
University in Wuhan, China. He was on the faculty of Huazong Agricultural University
from 1988-1993, and subsequently came to CREC as a postdoctoral researcher. He worked
for two years at the University of Alberta as a postdoc and returned to CREC in 1998.
To see more information on the ornamental horticulture program at the GFREC, visit
http://vtgcrec.ifas.ufl.edu/pages/ornamental_research_programs.htm. Dr. Deng’s new
telephone number is (941) 751-7636 and his e-mail address is zdeng@mail.ifas.ufl.edu.
The Gmitter lab gathered to wish Dr. Deng and
Ying Hong farewell and best wishes on Dec. 13.
From left to right: Mirko Siragusa, Jaime
Purugganan, Ying Hong Wang, Margie Wendell,
Ling Wang, Zhanao Deng, Fred Gmitter, Misty
Holt, Huang Shu, Zhanao Deng, Qifa Zheng and
Xu Xiang.
Photos by Gretchen Baut.

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A Very Citrusy Christmas . . .
Citrus fruit was available during the holidays and has been throughout the fruit season, compliments of CREC. In December, citrus was
delivered to the UF campus in Gainesville, the MidFlorida REC in Apopka (who gave us houseplants for the Dec. 13 party) and the Gulf
Coast REC on Bradenton (who gave us tomatoes). A BIG thank you to CREC’s grove crew, packinghouse and pilot plant crews and the
maintenance shop for the harvesting, cleaning, packing and delivery of the fruit.
Packinghouse Crew: Tom Robnett, Bob Hoobin and Tam Nguyen; Pilot Plant Crew: Tommy Long, Virgil Stewart and Merritt Daughtery
Grove Crew: Troy Gainey, Lamar Odom, Bill Alexander, Michael Clock, Robert Kleber, Phillip Mitchell and Rommel Rubio.
Facilities/Maintenance: Roxy Hoover, Diamond Basnaw, Glenn Craddock, Sherry Cunningham, Joe Creekbaum, Michael Daughtery,
Perry Love, Bruce Robertson, Kevin Troelson, Dan Tuzzolo, Wayne Tyler, Jim Vaughn and Terry Daghita.
Dr. Russ Rouseff (left) was the 1st place winner in the
Holiday Party dessert contest with his tropical trifle.
Eileen Albright (right) won 1st place in the hors
d’oeuvres contest with her herbed cheesecake. Winners
won $25 gift certificates to Outback Steakhouse.
Below, L to R: 2nd place - desserts, Mike Armstrong,
tiramisu; 2nd place - hors d’oeuvres, Kathy Snyder, hot
crab dip; 3rd place winner in both desserts and hors
d’oeuvres, Dr. Shila Singh, butter pecan cake and
onion pakoras. Congratulations!
It was a festive and fun atmosphere at CREC’s Holiday Party on Dec. 13. Left: Jamielyn Daughtery was the winner of the icebreaker
game. Middle left: Drs. Jackie Burns and Ed Exteberria enjoy the festivities. The Postharvest and Processing working group
organized the party this year, with Dr. Russ Rouseff in charge. Dr. Burns was in charge of entertainment and Dr. Exteberria organized
the food committee. Middle right: Kathy and Dr. Bill Miller, who headed the decorations committee, surrounded by some of the
festive party decorations. Right: The decorations looked good enough to eat, according to Roy Sweeb.
Music, food and fellowship were aplenty. Left to right, Jerry Dunn (husband of Denise Dunn) and fellow musicians provided musical
entertainment; middle left, dinner included smoked turkey and potluck goodies; middle right, Dr. Ken Derrick looks over the crowd;
and right photo (L to R), Dr. Sachindra Mondal, Glen Dreher and Curt Colburn. Photos by Gretchen Baut and M. Lewandowski.

Tis the season for Santa and . . . lot of reasons to smile! Left: Dr. Rongcai Yuan’s son, William, and middle left, Dr. Fred Gmitter’s
daughter Kacie spend some time with Santa (Jack Smoot). Middle right: from left to right, Gabriela Ibarra (daughter of Lorrie
Friedrich), Brent (front) and Devin Butts (grandchildren of Shelby Graham), Heidi and Molly Grosser (daughters of Jude Grosser),
standing in back, Heidi and Molly’s friend Leisa Englert, and Alexei Danyluk (son of Greg Danyluk and Peggy Sieburth). Right photo:
Dr. Lorenzo Zacarias (standing,) Drs. Jaime Cubero, Maria Angeles Ayllon, Elisabeth Knapp, Ana Redondo, Fernando Alferez and
Zenaida Viloria. Special thanks to Gretchen Baut, who set up the photo shoot at the party.
To Grandmother’s House We Go . . .
Women on the first floor of Building 24 (“Admin”) and in Building 03 (directly west of BHG) hosted a luncheon on Dec. 18 in
“Grandma’s Holiday Kitchen” complete with handmade crafts and homemade food. The many smiles below indicate a good time was
had by all! Photos by Gretchen Baut and Monica Lewandowski.
BHG was transformed into “grandmother’s house” with a
fireplace and kitchen. Diana Drouillard and the luncheon
committee provided decorations.
Cindy Holbrook (left) and Mrs.
Ahrens.
Hostesses Diane Bright (above) and Jeannette Barnes & Diana Drouillard.
Nancy Burke passes out name tags to Elisabeth Knapp and Barbara Thompson
(back). Diane Bright serves as luncheon committee chairman.
L to R: Tammy Flannery, Marjie Cody, Yehong Xu, Lura
Rixman and Eileen Hoobin.
Kathy Witherington and Pam Russ. Cecile Robertson and Rachel
McCoy.
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Lou Ellen Hedley (left) and
Janice Stewart.
Dr. Hong Li. Dawn and Patricia Brickman.

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CREC Welcome
Nicolas Feagle - OPS (Dr. Brlansky)
Amy Lane - Sr. Biologist (Dr. Childers)
CREC Farewell
Sandy Barros - Research Scientist, FDOC
Dr. Jianchi Chen - Research Scientist, FDOC
Kenneth Hagan - OPS (Dr. Albrigo)
Tracey Bassett - OPS (Dr. Syvertsen)
Congratulations to Margie Wendell on the birth of her
grandson, Noah Timothy Wendell, born on Jan. 1, 2003, to
Rebecca Deeann Wendell. The New Year’s Day birth was the
second in the family, as Rebecca’s cousin also gave birth to a
baby girl that day in Lakeland.
Congratulations
to Mauricio and Lillian
Rubio on the birth of their
son, Mauricio Josué
Rubio, born Dec. 1, 2002!
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NEWS AROUND CREC
Ring, ring! New Phone System
in Place
CREC has implemented a new Cisco IP Phone system and
digital service. Our phone numbers remain (863) 956-1151 for
Central Switchboard, and (863) 956-4311 to reach our “automated
attendant.” The automated attendant allows you to dial
extensions directly or search for names if the extension number is
unknown. CREC/IFAS extension numbers are now 1 + old
extension number. The CREC Switchboard extension is 1011.
Suncom numbers have changed, however, and CREC is
accessible via these 4 direct Suncom lines:
515-8913: Central switchboard; basic automated
attendant when the switchboard is unattended;
515-8921: Automated attendant;
515-8930: Center Director’s office;
515-8931: Business Office FAX.
Old 533-xxxx Suncom numbers will soon be out of service.
The new phones offer features such as a directory of CREC
employees, a history of missed calls, speaker phone, conference
call capability, call transfer, redial, call forwarding and an extensive
collection of optional ring sounds. Seek assistance from
CREC’s Information Support Dept. group for a demonstration of
these features.
- Manuscripts Submitted to the Publications Committee in December -
(as of Dec. 19):
J. P. Syvertsen, C. Goni, and A. Otero. Fruit Load and Shading Affect Leaf Photosynthesis and Carbohydrate Status in ‘Spring’ Novel
Orange Trees. Tree Physiology.
J. P. Agostini, P. M. Bushong, A. Bhatia, and L. W. Timmer. Effect of Environmental Factors on the Severity of Citrus Scab and Melanose.
Plant Disease.
A. Bhatia and L. W. Timmer. Evaluation of Products for the Control of Alternaria Brown Spot on Minneola Tangelos, 2002. Fungicide and
Nematicide Tests.
A. Bhatia and L. W. Timmer. Evaluation of Products for the Control of Citrus Greasy Spot on Grapefruit and Oranges, 2001-02. Fungicide
and Nematicide Tests.
A. Bhatia and L. W. Timmer. Evaluation of Products for Control of Citrus Scab on Temple Tangor, 2002. Fungicide and Nematicide Tests.
N.A.R. Peres and L. W. Timmer. Evaluation of Products for the Control of Postbloom Fruit Drop (PFD) in Screenhouse and Field Trials,
2001. Fungicide and Nematicide Tests.
N.A.R. Peres, N. L. Souza, T. L. Peever, and L. W. Timmer. Benomyl Sensitivity of Isolates of Colletotrichum acutatum and C.
gloeosporioides from Citrus. Plant Disease.
R. S. Buker III, B. Rathinasabapathi, W. M. Stall, G. MacDonald, and S. M. Olson. Response of Tomato and Pepper Acetolactate Synthase
to Sulfonylurea Herbicides. Weed Science.
G. Y. Zhong and J. K. Burns. Profiling Ethylene-Regulated Gene Expression in Arabidopsis thaliana by Microarray Analysis. The Plant
Cell.
L. W. Duncan, D. C. Dunn, G. Bague, and K. Nguyen. Competition Between Entomopathogenic and Free-Living Bactivorous Nematodes
in Larvae of the Weevil Diaprepes abbreviatus. Journal of Nematology.
W. S. Castle. Research Update on Earlygold, Itaborai, Ruby, and Westin Sweet Oranges. Citrus Industry Magazine.
G. Barry, W. S. Castle, F. Davies, and R. Littell. Variability in Juice Quality of ‘Valencia’ Sweet Orange and Sample Size Estimation for Juice
Quality Experiments. Journal of the American Society for Horticultural Sciences.

“Power of Feedback” Jan. 13 - BHG 3-4 - 1-4 pm
This is a Supervisory Challenge Core Course and will be presented by Jodi Gentry, Assistant Director for Training and Development,
UF Division of Human Resources. In this workshop, you’ll learn how to deliver effective feedback about job performance and workrelated
behavior. You’ll also review how to formalize your feedback using UF’s appraisal process, including how to conduct the
appraisal interview.
Accessing UF/IFAS Solutions from Your Personal Computer
- A Workshop for Citrus Growers - Jan. 22, 2003 - 9:30 am - 1:30 pm
Want an easier way to find solutions to problems? Want to spend less time looking for information on the internet? Dr. Richard Buker,
CREC’s Citrus Extension Specialist, is conducting an internet workshop in BHG Rooms 3-4 on Jan. 22. Buker and Tom Hintz, Associate
Director of UF/IFAS Information Technologies, will offer instruction on using internet resources for citrus growers and an in-depth look
at websites for citrus, weather and other agricultural information. Computers will be provided for this hands-on training session.
According to Buker, the first session of the morning will include material for beginning computer users, and the mid-morning and
afternoon sessions will offer information for more experienced internet users. Participants may choose to attend sessions pertinent to
their areas of interest. As an added bonus, a CD with citrus resources from the UF/IFAS EDIS website (http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/) will be
given to all participants. The registration fee is $7 and includes lunch and the CD. Space is limited and pre-registration is required.
Contact Dr. Richard Buker, tel. extension 1201, e-mail: rsb@lal.ufl.edu
Some Upcoming Events at CREC
March 20, 2003. Citrus Engineering Conference, sponsored by the Florida Section of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers.
Contact: Dr. Renée Goodrich.
April 2, 2003. Diaprepes Task Force Scientific Meeting and joint meeting with the Florida Citrus Production Managers Association.
Contact: Dr. Clay McCoy.
April 15-16, 2003. “Healthy Trees in a New Era - A Citrus Nursery Workshop.” Contact: Dr. Pete Timmer. Speakers from Florida,
California and Spain will address the budwood program, control of soil-borne and foliar diseases and exotic diseases. Displays and
presentations on equipment and supplies for nursery production.
In conjunction with the citrus nursery workshop, a field trip to Brazil’s citrus region is being planned during the week of April 20-26,
2003. The trip will include visits to citrus nurseries and opportunities to see exotic diseases such as black spot, leprosis and citrus
variegated chlorosis (CVC). The Brazil trip will be limited to 25 people plus field trip guides. For more information on the citrus nursery
workshop and/or the field trip to Brazil, contact Pete Timmer at Ext. 1267 or e-mail: lwt@lal.ufl.edu. Event information will also be posted
on the internet at: www.lal.ufl.edu/timmer
August 21, 2003. Citrus Packinghouse Day. Contact: Drs. Bill Miller, Renée Goodrich or Mark Ritenour (IRREC).
October 16, 2003. Citrus Processors Day and Subtropical Technology Conference. Contact: Dr. Renée Goodrich, Tel. (863) 956-1151; email:
rmg@lal.ufl.edu.
Citrus Pest Management Course in Spring
Citrus Pest Management (PMA 5205) will be offered at
CREC for the Spring 2003 term. It is a graduate-level course
(3.0 units) for students and citrus industry personnel working
in pest management. The course reviews the latest tactics
and strategies available to manage diseases and arthropod,
nematode and weed pests of citrus. Emphasis is given to
techniques by which pest and disease organisms are
monitored and how this information is used to effectively
manage pests with the least risk to the environment.
The course is coordinated by Dr. Larry Duncan.
University credit (3.0) or audit credit. CEU’s will be offered.
Dates/Time: Thursdays, Jan. 9 – April 29, 2003; 3 - 6 p.m.
Location: BHG Teaching Laboratory
Textbook: Citrus Health Management (APS Press). L.W.
Timmer and Larry W. Duncan, editors. Written by 26 citrus
specialists, Citrus Health Management was designed
specifically for this course.
Registration: Registration cost for Citrus Pest Management
(PMA 5205; Section no. 4812) is $538.05 for Florida residents.
Registration procedures are outlined on the UF/IFAS Distance
Education website (disted.ifas.ufl.edu/registration/
registration_info.html).
For registration assistance, contact Monica Lewandowski at
Tel. (863) 956-1151 or E-mail: mmlew@lal.ufl.edu.
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