From Disease Challenges to Integrated Solutions
Rapid diagnostics, rigorous research, and collaborative extension—uniting expertise to protect North Florida's specialty crops and ornamentals.
Why 360IPM?
The North Florida agricultural landscape is dynamic and valuable-tomatoes, peppers, cucurbits, citrus, and ornamentals represent millions of dollars in regional production, supporting thousands of farming families and operations. Yet plant diseases remain among the most significant threats to profitability, sustainability, and food security across specialty crops and ornamental systems in North Florida and the Florida Panhandle.
360IPM Lab exists to address these challenges. We are an integrated plant pathology research and extension program that brings together disease diagnostics, applied field research, and work in close collaboration with growers and industry partners. Our focus is on improving disease management decisions in specialty crop and ornamental production systems across North Florida and the Florida Panhandle, with solutions that are relevant, timely, and grounded in real production conditions.
Our Foundation
360IPM is hosted at the University of Florida's North Florida Research & Education Center (NFREC) in Quincy. The program integrates 40+ years of institutional expertise in crop science, plant breeding, and production with 12+ years of specialized research and extension in plant pathology, diagnostics, and integrated pest management.
At its core, 360IPM operates the Plant Disease Diagnostic Lab—the regional hub for pathogen identification and confirmation—serving commercial producers, extension agents, university researchers, and regional collaborators. Every day, this lab bridges the gap between discovery and practice: real-world disease problems become research questions, and research findings translate directly into actionable recommendations for growers facing those challenges.
What We Do
360IPM operates across three interconnected functions:
Speed and accuracy define our diagnostic work. When disease appears in your field, delays in diagnosis lead to misapplication of inputs, wasted time, and economic loss. We provide rapid, evidence-based pathogen confirmation using both traditional microscopy and cutting-edge molecular techniques. Whether you suspect bacterial wilt in tomatoes, fungal pathogens in ornamentals, or emerging viral threats, our lab delivers the answers you need to make informed management decisions—quickly.
Our research program spans the full continuum of disease management: population genetics of pathogens, host resistance mechanisms, biocontrol agents, reduced-risk chemistries, and integrated management frameworks. We test innovations in real-world production environments across tomatoes, cucurbits, peppers, citrus, and ornamentals—because laboratory results must work on commercial farms. Our research informs every recommendation we make and every tool we develop, ensuring that solutions are both scientifically sound and practically viable.
We empower commercial growers with field-tested, locally relevant disease management programs. We train and support extension agents through regular in-service training, diagnostic decision-making protocols, and ready-to-use extension materials. We partner with commodity groups and industry to co-develop solutions that reflect real market needs. And we serve as the regional voice for emerging disease threats, providing timely alerts and evidence-based management strategies when new challenges arise.
Our Clientele & Partners
360IPM serves four primary audiences, each with distinct needs and expertise:
Team
Sanju Kunwar
My program is an integrated research and extension initiative focused on sustainable disease management for specialty crop and ornamental production systems across North Florida and the Florida Panhandle.
Susannah Da Silva
My program is an integrated research and extension initiative focused on sustainable disease management for specialty crop and ornamental production systems across North Florida and the Florida Panhandle.
Fanny B. Iriarte
My program is an integrated research and extension initiative focused on sustainable disease management for specialty crop and ornamental production systems across North Florida and the Florida Panhandle.
Derek Hurley
My program is an integrated research and extension initiative focused on sustainable disease management for specialty crop and ornamental production systems across North Florida and the Florida Panhandle.
Why 360IPM Matters
Help Finding Information Online
The diseases threatening North Florida agriculture are evolving. Pathogens develop resistance to management tools. Emerging exotic threats require rapid identification and response. Climate variability creates new pressure windows. Commercial growers cannot afford delays, guesswork, or one-size-fits-all solutions.
360IPM responds to this reality through integration: diagnostics that inform research, research that informs extension, and extension grounded in real grower challenges. We bring university expertise directly into the field. We operate with urgency and transparency. And we build sustainable, economically viable solutions that work for real farms, real crops, and real families.
Our name—360IPM—reflects our commitment to approaching disease management from every angle: diagnostics, research, extension, cultural practices, biological strategies, targeted chemistries, host resistance, and systems thinking. We do not offer silver bullets. We offer integrated, field-tested approaches that evolve with your challenges and the regional agricultural landscape.
Get in touch
Growers, extension agents, industry partners, and researchers—connect with us for diagnostic support, training, research collaboration, or field-site partnerships.