
Tropical
Agriculture Research Station Celebrates 100 Years of Scientific ResearchBy Jim
Core December 11, 2001Distributing valuable cacao and
tropical fruit germplasm and developing efficient agricultural crop production
systems are two of the most important ongoing missions of the Tropical
Agriculture Research Station (TARS)
as it celebrates its 100th anniversary today in Mayagüez, Puerto Rico. The
station is operated by the Agricultural Research Service, the chief scientific
research agency of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture. In 1901, the U.S. Congress authorized the establishment of the research
station to study agricultural problems of interest to the island. One hundred
years after its inception, the station is making important contributions to
agriculture on a regional and national scale. According to Ricardo J. Goenaga, research leader of TARS, a main goal of
scientists at the station is to develop fruit production systems that aid
growers in expanding the markets and marketability of their crops. For example,
in one project scientists are determining how much water banana and papaya
cultivars need to grow on various soil types. They are also evaluating new
plantain, papaya, longan, rambutan, mamey sapote and lychee fruit cultivars. Today, TARS grounds contain one of the finest and best-documented tropical
plant collections in the Western Hemisphere, consisting of more than 2,000
permanently established species. TARS research also focuses on improving
genetic diversity in dry beans and sorghum. The Germplasm Introduction and Research Unit in St. Croix, Virgin Islands,
is a satellite site of the Mayagüez station. This facility is also part of
ARS' U.S. National Plant Germplasm System (NPGS).New germplasm is grown
there in isolation and certified to be free of potentially harmful plant
pathogens before it is released for domestic use. Participants at todays celebration will hear numerous guest speakers,
see presentations about scientists research at the station and be given
the opportunity to tour the grounds. Other recent research projects at TARS include developing a simple and rapid
method to screen for sorghums susceptibility and resistance to ergot, a
devastating plant fungus; selection of bean germplasm with heat tolerance and
resistance to common bacterial blight, a serious bean disease; and selection of
early, high-yielding clones of cocoa. U.S. Department of Agriculture |