Amanda Quintos – EDIS Update

Feeding Your Baby

Feeding your baby is one of the first things you do as a parent. It is also one of the ways that you develop a relationship with this new family member. When feeding goes well, everyone in the family is happier. This 3-page publication can help you develop a close feeding relationship with your baby. The skills you learn will also help you and your child avoid conflicts over food during the toddler and preschool years. Written by Linda B. Bobroff and Nicole Owens Duffy, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, revised March 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/he964

Enhancing Motivation through Work Meaningfulness

Work meaningfulness is described as the amount of significance an employee perceives in their work. Employees who view their work as meaningful demonstrate higher work motivation, performance, and satisfaction than employees who do not. This new 2-page document discusses ways to change the perception of meaningful work. Written by Jarred A. Shellhouse, Hannah S. Carter, and Matt P. Benge, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural Education and Communication, February 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/wc330

Economic Selection Indices: The Best Tool for Dairy Cattle Selection

An economic selection index combines multiple traits into a single value, facilitating the identification of the best animals. This new 3-page document discusses economic selection indices, their changes in the US, and a 2018 update. Written by Francisco Peñagaricano, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Animal Sciences, March 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/an353

Florida 4-H Community Pride Leader’s Guide

Service learning is an important component of youth development because it allows youth to strengthen their critical thinking skills, leadership skills, and civic and social responsibility. This 5-page Leader's Guide will help you and your club members get the most out of the Community Pride Program. Written by Stacey Ellison and Grace Carter, and published by the UF/IFAS 4-H Youth Development Department, January 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/4h396

Elemental Sulfur Recommendations for Sugarcane on Florida Organic Soils

Micronutrient deficiencies can be important limiting factors in alkaline soils, with most micronutrients becoming less available for plant uptake as soil pH increases. This 6-page document is intended primarily for Florida sugarcane growers but may also be useful to researchers and others interested in sugarcane nutrition. It presents revised elemental sulfur recommendations for sugarcane grown on Florida organic soils along with supporting information. Written by J. Mabry McCray, and published by the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, February 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ag429

La Ley de Modernizacion para la Seguridad Alimentaria (FSMA): Controles Preventivos para los Alimentos de Animales

La Ley de Modernización de la Seguridad Alimentaria (FSMA) se convirtió en ley en enero de 2011 y se considera la reforma más amplia de las normas de seguridad alimentaria en 70 años. Primero, se establecieron las regulaciones sobre alimentos para el consumo humano luego con la contribución de la industria, la academia, y los consumidores y otras agencias, se modificaron para adaptarse mejor a la producción de alimentos para animales. En Florida, estas nuevas regulaciones se aplican a las instalaciones que fabrican, procesan, empacan o almacenan alimentos o ingredientes para animales. El objetivo principal de estas regulaciones es garantizar alimentos seguros para los animales, las personas que manejan el alimento y las personas que consumen productos derivados de animales. This 4-page document is the Spanish version of The Food Safety Modernization Act (FSMA) Preventive Controls for Animal Food. Written by Francisco Rivera, Chad Carr, and Jason M. Scheffler, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Animal Sciences, February 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/an352

Potassium Fertilizer Recommendations for Sugarcane on Florida Organic Soils

Potassium is a primary plant nutrient that is required in large amounts by sugarcane. About 74% of the 400,000 acres of Florida sugarcane is grown on organic soils in the Everglades Agricultural Area. Potassium is not a component of organic matter and virgin Histosols contain very low concentrations of K, so release of K through mineralization of organic matter in these soils is not an adequate K source for plant growth. This 7-page document presents revised potassium fertilizer recommendations for sugarcane grown on Florida organic soils along with supporting information. Written by J. Mabry McCray, and published by the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, February 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ag428

Pastures and Forage Crops for Horses

Florida's unique climatic characteristics allow for forage production most of the year with a large variety of possible forage choices. Independent of the size of the operation and number of horses, good forage planning can help reduce feeding costs, environmental impacts, and nutritional disorders caused by high-concentrate feeding. With the exception of high-performance animals, horses can meet most of their nutritional needs from pasture. However, achieving this requires careful planning and implementation of a forage production and utilization program. This 9-page document discusses intake and nutrient requirements, pasture planning, forage species, and pasture management. Written by M. Wallau, E. L. Johnson, J. Vendramini, C. Wickens, and C. Bainum, and published by the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, revised January 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/aa216

Overseeding Rhizoma Perennial Peanut Pasture and Hay Fields during the Cool Season

Hay and livestock producers want to know if they can overseed their rhizoma peanut fields with cool-season forages during rhizoma perennial peanut dormancy. This new 5-page document discusses overseeding for hay and overseeding for grazing. Written by Jose Dubeux, Cheryl Mackowiak, Ann Blount, David Wright, and Luana Dantas, and published by the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, January 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ag426

Alimentacion Saludable: Organice Su Plato

Planear sus comidas puede ayudar a controlar las porciones y la cantidad de carbohidratos que usted consume a través del día. Esto es especialmente importante si usted padece de la diabetes o si usted es una persona en alto riesgo de padecer de la diabetes. This 2-page document is the Spanish version of Healthy Eating: Create Your Plate. Written by Jennifer Hillan and Linda B. Bobroff, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, revised December 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fy907

The Value of Milk Fat

In the Southeast, milk is priced based on fat and skim milk value, with additional bonuses for somatic cell and bacterial counts. In recent years, butterfat has become more valuable. This 7-page document discusses some of the history behind the changes in milk fat consumption, management factors that influence milk fat content and yield by dairy cattle, and economic implications of changing fat content through the diet in two case scenarios. Written by José E. P. Santos and Albert De Vries, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Animal Sciences, January 2019.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/an350

Applications of Artificial Intelligence for Precision Agriculture

Technological advances in computer vision, mechatronics, artificial intelligence, and machine learning have enabled the development and implementation of remote sensing technologies for plant, weed, pest, and disease identification and management. They provide a unique opportunity for the development of intelligent agricultural systems for precision applications. This 5-page document discusses the concepts of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning and presents several examples to demonstrate the application of AI in agriculture. Written by Yiannis Ampatzidis, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, December 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ae529

Are Cows Comfortable in Modern Dairy Facilities?

The main challenge of modern large dairy operations is to achieve high milk yield per cow without sacrificing health and welfare. Properly designed and managed facilities allow calves, heifers, and cows to be comfortable and successfully grow, mature, maintain health, and reach peak performance. This 8-page document discusses facilities, cow comfort, resting behavior, feed and water access and availability, stocking density, and heat stress. Written by Izabella Toledo, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Animal Sciences, December 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/an349

Calibrating Forage Seeding Equipment

Establishing forages from seeds often requires precision equipment to achieve specific seeding rates for a proper pasture stand. Most pieces of equipment have calibration charts, which are useful guides for making an initial setting. However, due to variations in seed size, purity, moisture content, equipment performance, ground speed, and other factors, calibrating equipment prior to each use is recommended. This 5-page document discusses a few calibration techniques for drills and broadcast spreaders. Written by Marcelo Wallau, Joao Vendramini, and Ed Jennings, and published by the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, revised November 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ag158

A Walk on the Wild Side: 2018 Cool-Season Forage Recommendations for Wildlife Food Plots in North Florida

Nationally, there is great interest in wildlife forages. Florida's light and sandy soils, hot and humid summers, and seasonal droughts pose unique challenges for successful food plot plantings. This 5-page document provides updated cool-season forage recommendations for wildlife food plots in north Florida. Written by A. R. Blount, M. Wallau, H. K. Ober, E. Rios, J. M. B. Vendramini, J. C. B. Dubeux, Md. A. Babar, C. L. Mackowiak, and K. H. Quesenberry, and published by the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, revised November 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ag139

Brazilian Peppertree Control

Brazilian peppertree is encroaching upon nearly all terrestrial ecosystems in central and south Florida. This 5-page document discusses the plant's habitat, identification, characteristics, and biology as well as control methods. Written by K. T. Gioeli, S. F. Enloe, C. R. Minteer, and K. A. Langeland, and published by the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, revised November 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/aa219

Healthy Living: Monitoring Your Blood Pressure at Home

Do you think your blood pressure may be too high? Have you been diagnosed with high blood pressure? In either case, it is recommended that you monitor your blood pressure at home and get it checked at the doctor's office. This 4-page document discusses how to monitor your blood pressure at home. Written by Linda B. Bobroff, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Family, Youth and Community Sciences, revised November 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/fy1126

Hurricane Impacts on Florida's Agriculture and Natural Resources

Hurricanes are capable of affecting almost everything in their paths. Their strong winds and heavy rains can directly impact both inland and coastal areas in short periods that usually last about a day. This new 10-page document reviews basic facts about hurricanes and their effects in Florida and discusses ways they might affect Florida's agriculture and natural resources. Written by Young Gu Her, Ashley Smyth, Pamela Fletcher, Elias Bassil, Ulrich Stingl, Zachary Brym, and Jiangxiao Qiu, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Agricultural and Biological Engineering, October 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ae528

Forage-Based Heifer Development Program for North Florida

Developing replacement heifers to become productive females in the cow herd is a tremendous investment in a cow-calf operation that takes several years to make a return. Fortunately, there are several options to develop heifers on forage-based programs that can help reduce costs while meeting required industry performance targets. This new 4-page document proposes a model for replacement heifer development based on forage research trials at the UF/IFAS North Florida Research and Education Center (UF/IFAS NFREC) in Marianna, FL. Written by Jose Dubeux, Nicolas DiLorenzo, Kalyn Waters, and Jane C. Griffin, and published by the UF/IFAS Agronomy Department, October 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/ag424

Methods of Trace Mineral Supplementation

The forage cattle consume as the bulk of their diet is often deficient in trace mineral concentrations. Cattle producers can choose from a number of different methods to provide supplemental trace minerals to cattle. This 3-page document discusses several common ways to provide trace mineral supplements as well as their advantages and disadvantages. Written by Matt Hersom and Todd Thrift, and published by the UF/IFAS Department of Animal Sciences, October 2018.
http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/an348