Welcome to Mike Barbour who recently transferred from the Botany Department to the Department of Environmental Horticulture. Mike is an internationally recognized plant ecologist with many publications on California plant communities. He has received US Forest Service grants to support studies of secondary succession in forests that have been logged. We are excited to have his expertise that will broaden our ability to analyze human effects on plant communities and formulate methods of restoration, revegetation and conservation.
Congratulations to Andy Leiser who recently received the Curtis J. Alley Award for his outstanding contributions by the International Plant Propagators' Society. The award was presented by our own Dave Burger who is Editor for IPPS Western Region. Tony Kofranek received the Society of American Florists Alex Laurie Award for Research and Education. And congratulations to Larry Costello, adviser in Sen Mateo and San Francisco counties, for his award from the Northern California Turfgrass Council for Excellence in Research in Landscape Horticulture.
October 14-16, Sally Wagner represented us at the Pacific Regional Meeting of the American Society of Botanic Gardens and Arboreta, held at Strybing Arboretum and Botanic Gardens in Golden Gate Park, SF.
A special thanks to Ursula Schuch for all her efforts to make this years Ornamental Horticulture Extension Continuing Conference (OHECC) at UCR so successful. Statewide Workgroups in Turf, Floriculture/Nursery, and Landscape met to discuss research and extension priorities. There were many interesting presentations, none more entertaining then John Kabashima's. Next year OHECC Will be organized by Heiner Lieth and held at UCD.
We now have a department LOGO, thanks to the efforts of Dave Burger who suffered unmentionable assaults on his artistic credibility, judgement, intellect and general character in the process. Thanks Dave!
Pat Lindsay received a grant of $12,500 from the Slosson Foundation to direct the development of a technical resource manual on urban landscape establishment. She will be assisted by Specialist Dennis Pittenger of UCR, John Lichter of the Center for Urban Forest Research, and advisers Pam Elam, Deborah Giraud, Janet Hartin, Richard Molinar, Ed Perry, Dave Shaw, and Pavel Svihra. This manual and a series of slide sets will form the basis for an annual workshop to be offered by UCCE advisers and specialists.
Lin Wu received a grant of $25,000 from the PCS Sales Fertilizer Company in Illinois to support his research on recycled irrigation water for turfgrass.
The Sacramento Bee recently reported on the significant ways UC Davis has shaped the future. Included was Sy Gold's research on playground safety that helped develop standards adopted by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (UC Davis magazine, summer, 1993).
Greg McPherson and Paul Sacamano made the trek from Chicago to join scientists at the Center for Urban Forest Research. Greg was lead scientist on the Forest Service's Chicago Urban Forest Climate Project and will wrap up that project in Davis this fall while conducting other green space accounting studies aimed at quantifying urban forest benefits and costs. Paul is finishing a study comparing the accuracy and cost-effectiveness of airborne videography and aerial photography for determining urban forest structure and health. He will manage a study funded by the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to estimate impacts of urban tree planting on atmospheric carbon removal.
_ Congratulations to Rowan Rowntree, project Leader and Director of the Center for Urban Forest Research, for receiving the Researcher of the Year Award from the forest conservation organization, American Forests. Last year Rowan received the highest research award given by the USDA, the Secretary's Medal for Distinguished Research for advancing the concept of urban forest ecology and instilling into this field concepts and methods from ecosystem science. Rowan is currently investigating how land development in California changes forest structure and function making use of a transect of sites from the Bay Area, Sierra Oak Woodland, Mixed Conifer, and Upper Montane. This research combined with his past studies in urban forestry and restoration ecology should provide improved recommendations for the mitigation of negative effects of development in California.
Phil Barker and Paula Peper of the Center for Urban Forest Research, are comparing effects of rootball depth and constraints on tree root development. In May they installed new experiments at the Solano Urban Forest Research Area to test whether circling roots can be prevented by the use of barriers with internal vertical ribs and to determine superiority of rib designs. Another objective is to compare barriers installed at two depths and the overall effect of barrier depth on the establishment of an adequate root anchoring system.
Heiner Lieth has returned following a 9-month sabbatic leave working with Rolf Larson at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences at Alnarp. They extended their earlier model for shoot elongation response to B9 application in Chrysanthemum to include response to temperature and light. Heiner also took the opportunity to see and better understand ornamental production, science and extension in northern Europe.
Carolyn Napoli and graduate student Jon Ruehle received a grant of $6,000 from the UCD Office of Research to support their studies of genetic loci that control the apical meristem and its effects on branching and flowering in petunia.
The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries of Japan has recently funded a Pioneering Research Project in Biotechnology to Rich Jorgensen on molecular genetic analysis of epigenetic variation in flower pigmentation patterns. The term of the project is 3 years and $120,000 has been awarded for the first year. The goal of the project is to understand how genes determine flower color patterns such as star and picotee, and how organ shape is determined. Rich has also been invited to present a paper an Gene silencing: Paramutation and Methylation to the International Congress of Plant Molecular Biology to be held next June in Amsterdam.
Visiting scholars continue to grace Mike Raid's (aka Linda Dodge's) lab. Dr. Kimani Waitaka from Kenya is investigating
the effects of water, temperature and ethylene on post harvest problems in tuberose, as well as the roles of carbohydrates in post harvest processes in gladiolus. Dr. Motoaki Doi from Japan has been developing methods to extend the vase life of a hybrid cultivar of statice that has troubled growers such as Andy Matsui. Doi is also interested in testing new growth media.
We are proud to announce that two of our graduate students have recently been added to the faculties of major agricultural colleges. Claudio Pasan wall become Floriculture Extension Specialist in the Department of Horticulture at Ohio State University and Raul Cabrera wall become Extension Specialist in Nursery Crop Management at Rutgers, State University of New Jersey. Both begin January 1, 1994.
Dan More recently joined Ron Lane's excellent greenhouse staff. Carl Souza will take the early retirement VERIP Ill and Donna Rinklieb wall become our Principal Agricultural Technician. Sandy Fielden, our excellent Principal Staff Associate, was congratulated by President Peltason himself for her 20 years of service to UC. We are grateful to have such a dedicated staff in the Department.
Emeritus Professor Harry Kohl has been busy helping the College inventory its resources and has been developing a video tape series of senior faculty discussing the history of the UCD campus. He also serves as adviser to the Department Committee on Research and Extension. Emeritus Professor Dick Harris serves on our Administrative Committee, and Emeritus Specialist Tom Byrne is seen in the lab and greenhouse nearly every day. We thank each of you for your assistance and wisdom-of-the-years.
Tony Kofranek and Wyn Floyd have enjoyed the freedom of retirement by travailing extensively. They went to Israel on Valentine's Day and spent 3 weeks renewing old acquaintances, including Abe Halevy, Yoram Mor, Shimon Mayak, ltzhak Biran, Naphtaii Zieslin and Hillel Soffer. Tony and Wyn also traveled to Czechoslovakia, Austria and Germany, and canned peaches in August. Congratulations to Abe Halevy on his marriage.
The Fall BB(I for Alumni and Friends did not happen this year due to "Chair Stress" and related excuses. Let's have a reception next Picnic Day similar to the one last year. Those who can come could meet to plan a function for Fall, 1994. If you cannot come to Picnic Day and would like to help please give me a call at 916 752 0349. I'm building an extensive mailing list but do not have phone numbers for many of you. Also, please let me know of anyone you think might like to receive the newsletter. Sorry we missed out this year, but look forward to seeing you next year.