Blog | Horticulture Innovation Lab

Women hold a screen with wooden frame, with cut up vegetables on it in crowd

Wrapping up 10 years of the Horticulture Innovation Lab

Reflecting on horticulture accomplishments upon the completion of two 5-year grants with UC Davis leading the Horticulture Innovation Lab.

Agriculture researcher discusses technology testing at postharvest training center in Mulindi, Rwanda

How to create a successful postharvest center in 5 key steps

Lessons learned from the launch of three postharvest centers in Rwanda with valued partners, using a model piloted by an earlier Horticulture Innovation Lab project.

UC Davis students speak to refugee farmers at IRC New Roots farm in Sacramento

Sharing a low-cost solar dryer with refugee farmers in Sacramento

UC Davis student team leads workshops on the chimney solar dryer with refugee farmers at Sacramento's New Roots farm.

Farmer carrying bundles of freshly harvested vegetables from his field in Cambodia

Agricultural innovations help Cambodian farmers thrive

With help from Horticulture Innovation Lab researchers, they’re growing nutritious crops that boost their income.

Women farmers standing on the edges of canals in farming field, one holding a hoe to divert water

Video with 3 insights into participatory, farmer-led irrigation for development

Researchers learned from farmers about their about irrigation constraints, via participatory approaches, and share recommendations about how farmers’ chosen innovations can be applied more broadly.

Woman in traditional dress stands at a meeting to speak, holding a photo, with professional women seated on either side of her

6 lessons from research empowering women in agriculture in Honduras

Research in Honduras with Penn State and Zamorano reinforced that incorporating gender equity into project design is critical — and five other lessons.

Young farmer holding green beans in sloped farming field

How drip irrigation is helping young Guatemalans profit from the land, as farmers and professionals

Hilarios Chaves, 20, is one young farmer who has doubled his vegetable yield to grow for his family, local markets, and export markets thanks to new innovations.

Woman leads discussion about a garden map with a group of community members at an educational event

How international experiences helped propel these NC State alumni into ag extension careers

Traveling to work with farmers abroad via the Trellis Fund provided insights that drove these students' careers forward.

Horticulture Training and Services center staff, interns and AVENIRs de-shell peanuts under a shade structure. They are smiling.

Young interns partner to deliver lessons to Guinean farmers

Days after completing her master’s thesis, Brooke Stefancik flew to Guinea for an internship and her first steps in an agricultural extension career.

UH Manoa student with local extension agent at front of classroom full of farmers and agricultural professionals in Tanzania

Student researchers take top honors in Agrilinks contest

Three students from our global network were honored by Agrilinks for writing about international agriculture experiences with the Horticulture Innovation Lab.

Close-up on hands holding potato roots with cyst nematode visible, from a field in Guatemala

How understanding farmer conceptions of soil health can impact nematode management

In Guatemala, nematodes have been blamed for cutting potato yields in half over the past 20 years. Researchers are connecting ‘fuzzy cognitive mapping’ with soil health practices to identify sustainable nematode management solutions.

woman farmer in front of farmer group, smiling

How participatory research works with irrigation project in Uganda

Read the story behind a farmer-led irrigation project with women farmers in Uganda that shows the challenges and benefits of how participatory research can work.

close up on young leaves of sweet potato plant

How to cook sweet potato leaves, with thanks from Ethiopia

Did you know the leaves of the sweet potato plant are also a tasty, nutritious food? In Ethiopia, where sweet potatoes can be a staple crop, a UC Davis student recently helped farmers reconsider their sweet potato crop in a new culinary light. Watch this video...

panelists at Power of Produce conference: How fruits and vegetable can conquer malnutrition and poverty

Event raises profile of fruits and vegetables at the World Food Prize

With nutrition in the spotlight at the Borlaug Dialogue, the Horticulture Innovation Lab joined with the World Vegetable Center and Catholic Relief Services to co-host a side event focused on horticultural crops.

Beth Mitcham speaking on conference stage, next to Jane Ambuko, with two panelists listening, "foodtank" visible in background banner

Horticulture Innovation Lab speakers focus on postharvest losses at Food Tank Summit

Solving problems of on-farm food loss and consumer food waste was the focus of an event at New York University, convening more than 30 food leaders for substantive discussions.