College of Agriculture, University of Arizona,
Arizona Land and People, Vol. 46, Number 1
Tucson Area Agricultural Centers By providing field sites that are conveniently close to campus laboratories, these centers give the College a competitive edge for recruiting and retaining some of the finest researchers in the modern life sciences. The well-equipped facilities offer easy access for students of all ages to gain practical experience and education in many agricultural disciplines. The central location of these centers is also vital to fulfilling the service mission of the College’s Extension programs. With their growing contribution to the character and economic diversity of the community, these centers are a valuable and appreciated feature of the Tucson landscape. Campus Agricultural Center
Center personnel maintain 50 greenhouses that are segregated into four facilities according to function. These greenhouses serve instructors, students, and researchers who work in both basic and applied sciences. Greenhouse-based research includes biological pest control, plant genetics, cotton physiology, urban horticulture, pesticide efficacy, plant molecular biology research, disease control, natural resource conservation, and controlled environment agriculture. Greenhouse teaching activities are closely tied to the research programs. The Karsten Desert Turfgrass research facility supports the Southwest’s growing turfgrass industry (see spotlight). Insect resistance to pesticides and advanced pest control techniques are studied at two entomology laboratories. Other facilities include an animal pathology lab, a wildlife research area, and the Arizona Crop Improvement Association. For more information, contact Campus Agricultural Center, 4101 N. Campbell Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85719-1114, (520)621-3246 |
Spotlight: Karsten Turfgrass Facility
Different species of grass are grown and evaluated for adaptation to desert conditions. These grasses range from commercially available cultivars to experimental grasses which are observed for turfgrass qualities and stress tolerant attributes. One such grass is saltgrass, which can tolerate salt levels between ½ to 1 ½ times that of sea water. Researchers screen plants for turf habit and prepare select plants for genetic improvements using biotechnology protocols to make dwarf plants for lawns.
The Karsten Facility also hosts field days, training events, and tours for the various clientele and research groups involved in turfgrass management. For more information, contact Karsten Turfgrass Facility, 2101 E Roger Road, Tucson, AZ 85719-1200, (520)318-7142 |
West Campus Agricultural
Center This 72-acre farm has experienced significant change in recent years. The Arizona State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory was completely rebuilt, providing additional space and greatly improved facilities. This laboratory provides services to veteri- narians, animal owners, and governmental agencies for the diagnosis of disease problems of livestock, companion animals, zoo and wild species. (See spotlight). The WCAC Aquaculture Pathology complex was recently expanded with the dedication of a new laboratory building to be used for the study of viral and bacterial pathogens of farm-raised and wild shrimp. The southern Arizona site offers isolation from commercial fisheries, which is necessary for the safe study of these diseases (See spotlight).
This farm continues to provide support to the College’s animal sciences programs by serving as a site for preparing feed and raising cattle. The facility is irrigated entirely with reclaimed water, and research animals are provided water from two domestic wells. |
Spotlight on the Arizona Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory (AzVDL)
A quarterly publication, the AzVDL Newsletter, is available in hard copy or online at http://microvet.arizona.edu listed at left. For more information, contact Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory 2831 N. Freeway, Tucson, AZ 85705 West Campus Agricultural Center (520) 621-2356 |
Spotlight on the Aquaculture Pathology Laboratory The Aquaculture Pathology Program is located in the Department of Veterinary Science and Microbiology. Its main research and diagnostic services pertain to shrimp diseases, particularly those caused by viruses. Faculty and graduate students work at both an on-campus diagnostic laboratory and at a quarantine facility/wet lab equipped with self-contained artificial sea-water systems for breeding stock, maintained at the West Campus Agricultural Center in Tucson. The UA provides expert assistance in a variety of diagnostic techniques, including histological identification of disease processes, electron microscopic examination of newly described disease agents, as well as other standard diagnostic methods.
In May, 1994, the laboratory was designated one of only two reference laboratories in the world for crustacean pathogens by the Office of International Epizootics headquartered in Paris, France. For more information, contact Aquaculture Pathology Program, Department of Veterinary Science/Microbiology, The University of Arizona Building 90, Room 201 Tucson, Arizona 85721 (520) 621-8414 |
Santa Rita Experimental
Range
Research on this unique facility has involved ecology and physiology of desert grassland plants and wildlife, brush control, plant introduction and reseeding, runoff and erosion control, range livestock nutrition and behavior, livestock/wildlife interactions, the International Biome Program, remote sensing, seismic/geophysical imaging, and insect studies. The range is used as a research and education center for schools and groups from around the world. It is currently used by four branches of the USDA, five departments from the University of Arizona, several other universities, and by a wide variety of groups who use the Florida Canyon Headquarters as a center for educational workshops and outdoor studies. Resident staff members are all volunteers. Grazing fees and cabin rentals to the range’s clientele provide operational funds. For more information, contact Santa Rita Experimental Range P.O. Box 1389 Green Valley, AZ 85622-1389 (520) 625-2121 Marana Agricultural Center
For more information, contact Marana Agricultural Center P.O. Box 846 Marana, AZ 85633-0846 Maricopa Agricultural Center
(MAC)
The Demonstration Farm operates as a 1460-acre commercial farm. It receives no state or federal funding. All revenues must come from the sale of commodities and through funds from farm programs available to any commercial grower. This farm serves as a facility to demonstrate the commercial viability and manageability of promising research results and technologies. This has helped in transferring information from small research plots to the large commercial farms in Arizona. The Bartley P. Cardon Research Building is the headquarters for the laboratories and offices of the resident faculty, staff, cooperating USDA scientists and industry scientists. Other facilities include an irrigation research laboratory, equipment repair and fabrication shop, a wide range of storage facilities, short and long staple cotton gins, and greenhouses.
MAC is a place where university and USDA scientists come together with industry scientists and growers for the purpose of transferring technology to increase production efficiency, manage air, soil and water resources efficiently and to protect the environment for the benefit of producers and consumers. For more information, contact Maricopa Agricultural Center 37860 W. Smith-Enke Road Maricopa, AZ 85239-3010 (520) 568-2273 Website: http://ag.arizona.edu/AES/mac/ |
Spotlight on Cotton Field Day at the Maricopa Agricultural Center Every October the Maricopa Agricultural Center holds the state Cotton Field Day to inform growers and industry representatives of the latest findings in cotton research. Participants tour the test plots, browse through the poster session, attend a symposium on current issues Arizona growers face, and talk informally with UA researchers and extension agents throughout the day.
“We also have a lot of trials that are conducted by commercial companies doing their own testing on-station, and by the USDA,” Roth says. The event regularly draws about 800 participants involved in cotton
production throughout the state. |
Citrus Agricultural Center
This 40-acre facility is used mainly for research but also to demonstrate the latest varieties and methodology in growing and maintaining citrus, deciduous trees and vine crops. Research includes variety evaluation, nutrition, water use and requirements, frost protection, rootstock evaluation, pest and disease control, organic growing methods, and dwarfing techniques.
Deciduous nuts and fruits include pecans, almonds, pistachios, apples, peaches, apricots, figs, nectarines, pears, berries (blackberries, raspberries, boysenberries, and blueberries), grapes, jujube, jojoba, and date palms. A 1.5 million gallon water storage pond is used to raise fish (tilapia, catfish and koi) and for irrigation purposes. For more information, contact Citrus Agricultural Center 14642 N. Perryville Road PO Box 99 Waddell, AZ 85355 (602) 255-3316
This agricultural center provides research and service to farmers in a wide area that includes Graham, Greenlee and Cochise counties. Located just outside Safford in Graham County, this 63-acre agricultural center has been a performance testing site in the long staple cotton breeding program for more than 30 years. Solving problems in cotton is a particular focus; variety testing for a number of field crops is another.
For more information, contact Safford Agricultural Center P.O. Box 1015 2134 S. Montierth Lane Safford, AZ 85546-9413 (520) 428-2432 Yuma Agricultural Center This center includes two locations, valley and mesa, to take advantage of the different low desert conditions and soil types in southwestern Arizona. Both sites are irrigated with Colorado River water. The center also includes seven resident faculty from five academic departments, who conduct research and outreach programs throughout the low desert region of Arizona. Additionally, faculty and research scientists from the main campus in Tucson, from USDA-ARS facilities throughout the western U.S., and the private sector, also conduct research on this facility. This center has a staff of approximately 40 individuals and includes research technicians and specialists, office and clerical personnel, and farm personnel. Programs conducted on the 274-acre Valley Farm emphasize a diversified range of crops, including cotton, small grains, and vegetables. Programs with vegetables include such crops as lettuce, cole crops (broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower), and others. This farm is located four miles west of Yuma. Programs on the 240-acre Mesa Farm are primarily aimed at citrus production. However, programs on this facility include deciduous fruit production, vegetable production, and alfalfa production. This facility is located approximately four miles south of Yuma. Both facilities include office and laboratory buildings, greenhouse structures, and farm shop facilities. Research conducted at the center includes the biology and management of insects, the biology and management of crop diseases, weed ecology and control, seed and crop physiology, cultivar and rootstock development and evaluation, and soil, water and nutrient management. For more information, contact Yuma Agricultural Center – Valley Station 6425 W. 8th Street Yuma, AZ 85364-9623 (520) 782-3836 OR Yuma Agricultural Center – Mesa Station RR 1, Box 40M Somerton, AZ 85350-9701 (520) 726-0458 The V Bar V Ranch This newest agricultural center, established in 1995, addresses environmental, wildlife and domestic livestock issues appli- cable to Arizona and the Southwest. The historic V Bar V is a 57-pasture grazing allotment that runs about 30 miles east from Camp Verde along the Mogollon Rim. It varies between four and five miles in width and spans Coconino and Yavapai counties. Slightly more than 40 acres is private land, with the remainder held under lease from the U.S. Forest Service. The variations in elevation allow the UA College of Agriculture to expand its experiment station network to include higher elevation ecosystems. In addition to 550 cattle, the ranch is also home for a wide variety of wildlife, ranging from mammals, birds and fish to reptiles and amphibians. Vegetation zones, including high desert chaparral, pinyon-juniper woodland, and pine forest, are typical of those on most of the commercial ranches in central and northern Arizona. The V Bar V is a fully operating, working ranch. Research involves an applied approach to problem-solving, rather that laboratory studies in basic science. Current studies focus on three main areas: cow herd management; range and watershed activities, and wildlife interactions, particularly with elk. Annual natural resource tours are open to the public; a self-guided auto tour is also available. For more information, contact Colin Kaltenbach, Director, Arizona Agricultural Experiment Station, Forbes 314A, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, 85721, (520) 621-7201, or check the V Bar V web site at ag.arizona.edu/vbarv/index.html. Document part of 1997 The Agricultural Experiment
Station Today |