Posts Tagged: Lindcove

High school students who worked with UC mentors big winners in ag science fair

Nine Woodlake High School students took part in the UC Davis Agriscience fair research project competition, held at the campus March 2-3. Several who worked with UC Lindcove Research and Extension Center scientists took home winning ribbons.

"We are very proud that we played a part in making these students winners," said Beth Grafton-Cardwell, Lindcove director.

Lindcove has been conducting an ag science ‘experience research' day for Woodlake High School ag academy students the past three years. Last September, the students participated in a research project on citricola scale taught by Grafton-Cardwell. Students learned about experimental design, studied the life cycle of the insect using microscopes, collected leaves from a research plot, evaluated the survival of the scales exposed to different treatments, and plotted their data.  

"This was a great opportunity for students to see how science applies to agriculture and to talk about careers in agricultural science," Grafton-Cardwell said.

The Woodlake winners who were part of the program were Kirsten Killian and Nate Reeves. Kirsten was mentored by Lindcove staff research associate Therese Kapaun. Kirsten won first place in plant systems and fifth place overall. Nate Reeves took fifth place in plant systems. In addition, Woodlake High School won the overall novice Division 1 team award.

The students' teachers are Jason Ferreira, agriculture academy instructor, and teaching assistants Joshua Reger, Joel Leonard and Stephanie Doria.   

ANR develops cost-recovery strategy to improve REC facilities

UC ANR leadership is proud of its outstanding network of nine Research and Extension Centers across the state. Including academic salaries and temporary funding, UC ANR invests close to $14 million annually in the REC system. We are committed to continuing to make an investment of this magnitude, recognizing the importance of each individual REC, and the REC system to our research and extension missions. 

A freeze on state operations and maintenance funding since 2006, and a virtual absence of deferred maintenance funds, necessitates a close look at how the annual investment is used so as to position the RECs for a long, successful future. UC ANR leadership is taking the long view to its programmatic collaboration and growth. As a result, we are developing a strategy for cost recovery to continue to operate and improve the facilities so that we can better serve researchers and their research and extension activities – well into the next decade, not just the next three to five years.

Key attributes of the strategy include:

• improved clarity of how full-cost research rates are calculated and how researcher costs are derived, based on a researcher's specific and agreed upon needs for labor and facilities,
• establishment of rates four to six months in advance of the effective date for the rate (i.e. rates published in January for projects beginning in July, or some variation of) in recognition of the need to project costs in advance of research start date,
• development of a cost structure that reflects different project needs and differences in costs required to support the needs, and
• ability to confirm researcher costs for specific, itemized research needs over a multi-year timeframe at time of proposal submission to a funding agency.

A move to this new way of calculating research rates will take some time to establish across all nine RECs. Our goal is to have this rolled out between January and March 2018 and to go into effect for any projects (new, renewed or expanded usage) beginning July 1, 2018. This is an ambitious goal given the review and approval process in place that ensures fairness of proposed methodology and charges. However, we are committed to making this a high priority in order to improve the research experience.

To assess feasibility of the approach, the Desert REC will move to a new model in the very near term and serve as a pilot study for the July 1, 2017 – June 30, 2018 timeframe. The new model includes different rates for different services (land, water, pesticides, labor, etc.). The new model applies at Desert REC for both new and continuing projects and provides the opportunity to identify any issues early on and make the necessary adjustments. The remaining RECs will develop research rates for REC services over the next few months and the new model will be refined and adapted in 2018-2019 for the remaining eight RECs.

For 2017-2018, researchers continuing projects at all RECs, except Desert REC and West Side REC, should plan on an additional 10 percent to their 2016-2017 research rate to cover increases in salaries and benefit rates and reflect a reduced subsidy by center funds applied to the full cost rate. New and renewed projects will be billed at a researcher rate of $27.46 per hour. A new project is one that has not been submitted to, and approved by, the REC previously. This higher rate reflects the need to reduce the subsidy applied to the full cost rate.

Researchers at West Side REC will be billed at a rate 10 percent above the 2016-2017 West Side REC research rate for all projects.

Developing a new strategy for setting research rates based on different rates for different services will take time, thus the decision to move forward as outlined above. The pilot assessment at Desert REC will illustrate the impacts of a new strategy on both researchers and business operations and help identify best practices to support the transition to a new strategy. We are committed to maintaining a system of RECs that are positioned to address present and emerging research needs for the long term and meet the planning needs of researchers.

Research and Extension Center	New projects and projects renewed at the end of the 3-year cycle	Continuing projects (2nd and 3rd year)
Desert	Charges based on services utilized (acreage, water, labor etc.)
West Side	2016-17 rate + 10%	2016-17 rate + 10%
Hansen, Hopland, Intermountain, Kearney, Lindcove, Sierra Foothill, South Coast	$27.46	2016-17 rate + 10%

Wendy Powers 
Associate Vice President  

View or leave comments for ANR Leadership at http://ucanr.edu/sites/ANRUpdate/Comments.

This announcement is also posted and archived on the ANR Update pages.

Mexican TV magazine covers Lindcove event

Because of anticipated inclement weather, the producers of the TV program California Country canceled their visit to the UC Lindcove Research and Extension Center's annual citrus tasting on Friday, which this year featured the dedication of two new facilities and the celebration of the facility's 50th anniversary.

After a bitter cold week and a night of heavy rain, the weather on Friday turned mild and dry for the well-attended and notable occasion. And even though the California television magazine wasn't present, the festivities were covered by a TV crew that traveled all the way from Sinaloa, Mexico.

Reporter Juan Francisco Sotomayor Valdéz and a photographer from Televisoras Grupo Pacífico gathered information, photos and footage for a 12-minute segment that will be broadcast on a television program that is offered on Sundays at 3:30 p.m Pacific Time. The segment on Lindcove, Sotomayor said, can be viewed on the Internet only while it is broadcast live, probably on Sunday, Dec. 27.

Turning the tables on the visiting reporter, I dusted off my Spanish to ask him a few questions on video about the team's willingness to travel more than 1,000 miles to a citrus research station in the United States. In his response, Sotomayor said they were visiting Lindcove because they understand that UC scientists are leaders in conducting citrus research.

The TV show has also had the opportunity to cover citrus research facilities in Valencia, Spain, and in Brazil. Sotomayor said the program's viewers would be interested in experiences UC researchers have had with the more than 200 varieties of citrus offered to growers in the United States. See the video below:

California Country to cover Lindcove celebration

One week from today, the University of California Lindcove Research and Extension Center will combine its annual citrus tasting with a laboratory dedication and a 50th anniversary celebration, an event that will be covered by California Country. California Country is a 30-minute weekly television broadcast produced by the California Farm Bureau Federation about the people, places and lifestyles that have made California the nation's largest food-producing state, according to its Web site. Producers will be in the area for several days collecting information for its program about the significant benefits of the Lindcove facility to the California citrus industry.

When the California Country program on Lindcove is posted online, you will find a link to it on this blog.

From humble beginnings in 1959, Lindcove has grown into a 175-acre research center where scientists conduct more than 25 projects annually. The facilities include 125 acres of research groves, three greenhouses, a packing line and fruit quality laboratory, two screen houses, a recently constructed laboratory for entomology and horticulture studies, and a conference center for teaching.

Many UC dignitaries are scheduled to attend the Dec. 11 event, including:

• Dan Dooley, UC Agriculture and Natural Resources vice president
• Barbara Allen-Diaz, ANR associate vice president-programs
• Kay Harrison Taber, ANR associate vice president-business operations
• Bill Frost, Director of ANR's statewide research and extension center network

Citrus growers and other ag professionals are invited to attend the ribbon cutting and citrus tasting from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Dec. 11. The following day, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon Saturday, Dec. 12, the general public is invited for citrus tasting. Master Gardeners and UC Cooperative Extension advisors will be available to answer questions from home gardeners and citrus connoisseurs.

Click here for more information and driving directions.

See scenes from last year's citrus tasting in the video below.

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