10
MAY
MAY
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The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is working with public health, agricultural, and academic experts to understand the possible threat posed by the spread of the Asian longhorned tick (Haemaphysalis longicornis) in several U.S. states since its discovery in 2017, according to today’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report.
“The full public health and agricultural impact of this tick discovery and spread is unknown,” said Ben Beard, ...
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6
DEC
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DEC
BY ROBBIE HARRIS
After Hurricane Florence hit the southeast coast last month, Claytor Lake, hundreds of miles away in southwestern Virginia, took a hit. More than fifteen tons of debris ended up in the lake – everything from the usual ‘flotsam and jetsam’ to at least one toilet, a mannequin, and an empty boat.
This part of Virginia is not home to very many lakes, and ...
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19
OCT
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OCT
Virginia Tech scientists have discovered that invasive plant species are essentially able to change in order to thrive on new continents and in different types of climates, challenging the assumption that species occupy the same environment in native and invasive ranges.
It’s no secret that globalization, aided by climate change, is helping invasive species gain a foothold across the planet, but it was something of a surprise to Virginia Tech researchers just how mutable these invaders are.
The study, ...
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5
DEC
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DEC
A new team-taught course will be offered this fall at Virginia Tech!
COURSE TITLE:
The Science and Policy of Invasions (GRAD 6984; Special Topics; 3 credits)
TIME:
The class will meet once per week during Fall Semester 2017; Time TBD
INSTRUCTORS:
Jacob Barney (jnbarney@vt.edu), Bryan Brown (brown51@vt.edu), David Haak (dhaak@vt.edu), Erin Hotchkiss (ehotchkiss@vt.edu), and Scott Salom (salom@vt.edu)
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
Invasive species are one of the five elements of global change that shape ecosystem structure and function worldwide. This course will take a “deep ...
8
MAY
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MAY
A Virginia Tech researcher will spend five years ‘deep in the weeds’ of Johnsongrass research with the help of a $5 million grant from the USDA.
Johnsongrass, native to the Mediterranean region, has snuffed out important native plants in the United States since it was first introduced in the 1800s, costing the agriculture industry millions of dollars each year.
In collaboration with lead researchers at the University of Georgia, Jacob Barney, an assistant professor of plant pathology, physiology, ...
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12
APR
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APR
BLACKSBURG, Va., Feb. 19, 2016 – A Virginia Tech invasive plant expert will be briefing congressional staff members on Monday on the best ways to increase the use of plants for biofuels without sowing an environmental nightmare in the process.
While plants used for biofuels are a vital part of a growing need to create more forms of alternative energy, careless planting of them can lead to an unwanted invasion of exotic plants that can push ...
19
FEB
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FEB
Jacob Barney, Assistant Professor in the Department of Plant Pathology, Physiology & Weed Science at Virginia Tech, is part of a research team that recently received a USDA grant to study the invasive weed, Johnsongrass.
From UGA Today
“A team of researchers led by faculty at the University of Georgia have received a $5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to find new ways of combating Johnsongrass, one of the most widespread and troublesome agricultural weeds in the world.
Native to the ...
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20
JAN
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JAN
BLACKSBURG, Va., Dec. 10, 2015 – Rose Peterson of Norfolk, Virginia, was recently whipping up some pesto, which is generally made with basil, pine nuts, olive oil, and Parmesan cheese.
But the Virginia Tech senior skipped the basil and instead substituted garlic mustard, a common weed that is one of many invasive plants that are not only ubiquitous, but also delicious.
“Garlic mustard grows commonly in lawns,” said Peterson, who harvested some from her aunt’s house in New ...
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10
DEC
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DEC
Jacob Barney, Assistant Professor in Plant Pathology, Physiology and Weed Science (PPWS), received the Outstanding Researcher Award at the Northeastern Weed Science Society’s (NEWSS) 69th Annual Meeting in Williamsburg, VA on January 5, 2015.
Dr. Barney and his collaborators have published numerous peer-reviewed papers in journals that include a wide variety of ecology, weed science, bioenergy, and policy/law research. He has been invited to speak around the world and has served as advisor to various industry ...
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20
JAN
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JAN
From VT NEWS:
Scott Salom, a professor of entomology in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, has worked for years to develop ways to combat the woolly adelgid and save hemlock trees.
In 2013, he and his team of researchers released one of the hemlock woolly adelgid’s predators from its native habitat in Japan into the woods in Virginia and West Virginia. If all goes as planned, the beetle will be another tool that resource managers will have to save ...
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15
APR
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Fall Semester 2014
Dr. Jacob Barney, will offer BIOLOGICAL INVASIONS, PPWS 4604 and 5604G, during fall semester 2014. The course will explore the historical, conceptual, mechanistic, societal, and political components of invasive species. The course begins with Darwin and ends with the “Homogocene”, covering the invasion process from introduction to ecological or economic impact and all components in between.
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15
OCT
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OCT