12:00 PM - 12:45 PM

Building a Tomato Nutrition Program From the Soil Up

Tomatoes are extremely heavy nutrient feeders and it is not only yield that suffers when nutrients run short during production. We will discuss methods and practices to build your soil prior to planting, then how to manage your nutrient injection program to increase yields and quality.

Steve Bogash, Marrone Bio

12:45 PM - 1:30 PM

*The Potential for Implementing Nano-technology based approaches in Plant Disease Management

Management of bacterial spot disease of tomato has been affected for many decades due to the development of copper tolerant strains of Xanthomonas spp. This presentation will give an overview of how uniquely designed metallic (Cu, Mg, Cu-Zn) antimicrobials utilizing nanotechnology has the potential to improve effectiveness of currently used copper based bactericides.

Dr. Mathews Paret, University of Florida

1:30 PM - 2:00 PM

*BioUnite - The Integration of Biological and Chemical Controls to Manage Insects and Diseases on Tomatoes

BioUnite®is a strategy for harnessing the power of biology with the performance of chemistry to provide solutions to key pest management challenges facing today’s vegetables growers. The speaker will describe the process and strategy and provide examples of evaluating various combinations of biopesticides and synthetic chemicals to provide optimal pest control while meeting today’s objectives of achieving control while managing residues, worker issues and preventing the development of pest resistance

Dr. Timothy Johnson, Marrone Bio