Cal Poly Strawberry Center

Samantha Simard, our Pathology Research Associate, represented the Strawberry Center at the American Society for Horticultural Science 2024 Annual Meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii. She presented on the effect of planting date on strawberry yield during the Commercial Horticulture/ Federal Partners Poster Session. Great job, Sam! You can view Sam's poster here: https://lnkd.in/gEYfyftp

We’re excited to share the results of our recent strawberry donation to the Department of Food Science & Nutrition! 🍓 Thanks to Molly Lear and the Food Sciences team, a fresh batch of strawberry jam has been crafted using strawberries straight from our fields. This collaboration is a perfect example of students learning by doing, engaged in every step of the process—from field to final product. We're very proud of this hands-on partnership that turns our harvest into something special! Head to our Instagram to see a video of the process: https://lnkd.in/gCQxXFFV You can purchase this at Campus Market stores and at the Cal Poly store in downtown San Luis Obispo.

Over the past few weeks, we've been busy prepping the fields for transplanting. This year, our acreage has increased with the inclusion of another field. Throughout this process, our students had the opportunity to help in every aspect - from discing the soil to laying the plastic. You'll see footage from almost every step of the process here. Our transplanting day is coming up at the end of October, so stay tuned! 🍓

Ever wonder whose behind the research? Take a look at the two faces of our Plant Pathology program and lab, Dr. Shashika Hewavitharana (Program Leader) and Samantha Simard (Research Associate). These two work incredibly hard to conduct research and perform plant disease diagnostics for the industry. Their expertise doesn't stop at the lab; they’re also dedicated educators at Cal Poly, with Dr. Hewavitharana serving as an assistant professor and Sam as a part-time lecturer. We are very thankful to have them on our team! 🍓🎉

Three of our graduate students, Marina Gutierrez, Joseph Ramirez, and Cooper Calvin, recently attended the APS Plant Health Annual Meeting in Memphis, TN. Both Marina and Joseph presented on their research projects. Marina's presentation was titled 'Effect of Abiotic Stresses on Macrophomina Root Rot Development in California Strawberry,' while Joseph presented his work on 'Evaluation of Host Resistance to Macrophomina Root Rot and Verticillium Wilt in Strawberry. You can view their posters here: https://lnkd.in/gXB3eyMC

JUST PUBLISHED: "A Two-Step Deep Semantic Segmentation and Object Detection Approach for Runner Recognition in Strawberry Plants" by Mojtaba Ahmadi, Abbas Atefi, Mohammadreza Ramzanpour, and John Lin. Strawberry farming in California faces a costly challenge: removing runners that divert plant resources away from fruit production towards producing daughter plants. Traditionally cut by hand, this labor-intensive task adds up to significant costs for farmers.   In collaboration with the California Strawberry Commission, this study introduces a two-step deep learning framework that combines semantic segmentation and object detection to accurately identify runners in strawberry fields. Successfully tested on three different cultivars, the AI system demonstrated high accuracy in runner recognition. This innovative technology paves the way for autonomous pruning robots, potentially reducing labor costs, increasing efficiency and boosting productivity for strawberry growers.   Read the paper here: https://lnkd.in/ggcTk3PQ

This past week our entomologist, Mohammad Amir Aghaee, met with former Strawberry Center graduate student Kiley Jensen to witness a demonstration of the Parabug drone delivering predatory mites on strawberries in Santa Maria. It was an opportunity to discuss predatory mite research and methods with Bill Turechek, Andrew Molinar, and Roberto Mendoza (former Center undergraduate student) of the CSC, Sally Grey of Biobest, Daniel Ibarra PCA and Gabino Duran of Rancho Bonita. Kiley showed us how the drone is loaded and applied, and spoke about the laws surrounding drone use in California agriculture. Daniel Ibarra discussed the economics of using drones compared to normal hand releases. It was a great opportunity to hear new perspectives and make connections!

A little change of pace from picking strawberries... Some of our staff and students had the chance to pick some pumpkins this past week! 🎃 We always enjoy connecting with other operations on campus and making the most of these opportunities. Happy Fall!

CONGRATULATIONS to Samantha Simard who successfully defended her master's thesis last week! Her thesis is titled "Survey of Soilborne Pathogens Infecting Strawberry in Oxnard, CA & Effect of Planting Date and Chill Treatment on Strawberry" and you can watch her presentation here: https://lnkd.in/gkK4Emvf Her thesis committee is comprised of Drs. Gerald Holmes (chair), Shashika Hewavitharana and Mark Hoffman (NCSU). We're incredibly proud of her and we can't wait to see her grow in her role as Pathology Research Associate! 🎉

Two of our student assistants, Sawyer Claussen and Olivia Bruns, received the 2024 WRCCA (Western Region Certified Crop Advisor) Allan Romander Scholarship Awards! Out of only four scholarships granted, we are incredibly proud that two of our own from the Strawberry Center have been recognized. Scholarship applicants were selected using the criteria of academics, leadership, awards, professional development and their pathway to becoming a CCA. Congratulations Sawyer and Olivia for this well-deserved recognition! https://lnkd.in/gDe8ENPD