Scientists from the Taiwan Agricultural Research Institute (TARI) visited UC ANR scientists and toured research plots at Kearney Research and Extension Center in Parlier on Aug. 14.
Atef Swelam, director of UC Kearney REC, welcomed Charng-Pei Li, rice researcher and division director of TARI Crop Science Division; Ming-Te Lu, associate researcher for fruit breeding, fruit cultivation, plant physiology and climate change adaptation; and Ya-Ling Hou, assistant rice researcher.
Atef explained the history of UC Cooperative Extension and how its scientists work with farmers and campus-based academics. He then led the TARI Crop Science Division scientists on a field tour, with the tram stopping first at a vineyard. Andreas Westphal, UCCE nematology specialist based at UC Riverside described his grapevine rootstock and nematodes research.
The group also heard about raisin and table grape research from Matthew Fidelibus, UCCE viticulture specialist based at UC Davis; Joy Hollingsworth, UCCE table grape advisor for Tulare and Kings counties; and George Zhuang, UCCE viticulture advisor for Fresno County.
At a peach orchard, Raymond Mireles, UCCE tree fruit advisor for Fresno and Tulare counties, discussed fruit research.
Their final tour stop was at the tea plantings, where Ryan Puckett, Kearney REC staff research associate, told them about the tea variety trials and production research to guide farmers growing the new California crop.
