A study led by the University of Maine captured how entire rockweed beds recover from harvest, and the practice has a smaller impact than previously thought. Rockweed wields immense influence over its intertidal habitat. Its tangled branches form the backbone of a rich ecosystem that shelters and feeds an abundance of marine life. Everywhere rockweed […]
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Bruce Hall has been named the Maine delegate to the Council for Agricultural Research, Extension, and Teaching (CARET). Hall will represent the University of Maine’s Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station and the College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture. CARET is a nationwide collaboration that advocates for understanding and support of the food and […]
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Scientists at the University of Maine are evaluating if lobster shells can cultivate beneficial microbial communities that ward off soilborne potato pathogens. The novel shell-to-spud combination may connect two cornerstones of Maine’s food system and enhance the state’s circular economy. Potatoes are Maine’s top agricultural commodity with a value of more than $215 million in […]
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Determining how wild blueberry growers can use biochar, charcoal-like material derived from the pyrolysis of wood, to increase soil moisture and aid in the crop’s ability to be resilient to drought will be the focus of a new study by University of Maine researchers. The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS) […]
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A University of Maine-led delegation of students and faculty joined the 8th Forest Congress in North America from Oct. 17-20 in Minneapolis, Minn. Forest Congresses date to 1882, and are called when critical issues arise for forests and the people who steward them. Past meetings led to groundbreaking change, including the establishment of the U.S. […]
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The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Forest Service awarded $62,500 to the University of Maine for the National Wood Bank project, which has the goal of providing operating support for national research and outreach programming related to wood banks. Wood banks have been around for a long time, although not always recognized or called wood […]
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The Mills Administration announced that Diane Rowland, dean of the University of Maine College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture, and Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station, is one of 15 individuals who will serve as members of the PFAS Fund Advisory Committee. The PFAS Fund Advisory Committee was assembled following the representation requirements described […]
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New England’s droughts in 2016, 2020 and 2022 offer a preview of farming amid a changing climate. This has caused farmers who rely on rainfall to seek more reliable water sources. Rachel Schattman, assistant professor of sustainable agriculture at the University of Maine, is leading the study of a novel shallow well design that is […]
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A natural control for an invasive fly that has plagued soft-fruit crops like Maine’s wild blueberries is being tested by scientists at the University of Maine. Spotted wing drosophila (SWD) infest healthy, ripening fruit with their eggs and larvae, impacting their marketability. Without control measures, the flies can destroy nearly 80% of late-season berry crops. […]
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University of Maine Cooperative Extension and the University of Maine College of Natural Sciences, Forestry and Agriculture are hosting a Potato Field Day from 11 a.m.–6:30 p.m. on Aug. 17 at the Maine Agricultural and Forest Experiment Station Aroostook Research Farm, 59 Houlton Road, Presque Isle. Presentation topics include potato breeding and variety trials, integrated […]
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