The central location for FFGS administration and programs is on the UF campus in Newins-Ziegler Hall (map). Our administrative staff, academic programs, and the majority of our Forest Resources and Conservation staff are located here. We also have a number of laboratories in the building as well as dedicated classroom space.

Reed Lab (map) is the location of our on-campus Geomatics program. This building houses our faculty and staff in Geomatics as well as a Polycom-equipped classroom, student computer laboratory, equipment, and research space.

Our programs recently acquired space in McCarty Halls B and C (map). There is a student study/work space as well as a conference room and offices for faculty to use while on campus.

The Austin Cary Forest is a natural laboratory in the northeast area of Gainesville serving the University’s missions in education, Extension, and research. Beginning in 1936, the originally-named School of Forestry needed a forest to put into practice the theories and principles of its academic subjects such as protection, silviculture, mensuration, management, economics, and others, thus the Austin Cary Forest was created. The 2,600-acre property is used by a wide variety of individuals and groups, and accommodates research, teaching, and outreach projects from throughout the University and beyond. Learn more >

The Forest is managed to meet three objectives: 1) support the teaching, research, and outreach needs of the School; 2) maintain and improve the overall health of the Forest, and; 3) generate revenue to support operations. The Forest is unique among public lands in Florida in that it is managed to include the greatest diversity of conditions possible. Portions of the Forest are intensively managed to maximize economic benefits through
fertilization and high-density planting, mimicking the private timber industry. Other portions of the Forest are managed to create and maintain pre-Columbian conditions of frequent fire, low densities of overstory, and native species composition, as with many other public lands. Within these two extremes, specific areas are managed to
demonstrate a variety of variable conditions.

Ongoing fundraising efforts seek to expand our education exhibits, which currently include a re-construction of an original turpentine still, nature walks, and interpretive signs. In the near term, we plan to create an exhibit with an existing 1940s-era sawmill within the Forest to tell the story of the sustainability of Florida’s forests and how advances in technology have impacted both forests and the lives of all our citizens.

Our Tropical Aquaculture Laboratory (TAL) in Ruskin, Florida strives to enhance the understanding of tropical, ornamental aquaculture through research and education. The Laboratory performs applied research, fish disease diagnostic services, and Extension education programs and promotes professionalism in Florida’s tropical aquaculture industry (map).

The TAL consists of a 5,000 square foot office and disease lab where over 20 faculty, staff, and students work, as well as a six and a half acre fish farm with 48 ponds, five greenhouses, a fish quarantine space, and a building that houses tanks and lab space for a wide range of projects. Aerated well water, seawater, and reverse osmosis water is
plumbed throughout the facility to allow for research in fresh, brackish, or seawater with an unlimited variation available to serve each project’s needs.

As part of the Land Grant mission, the programs at TAL have always focused on research and Extension to solve problems or create opportunities and have provided millions of dollars each year in savings or new profits to farms. Working closely with industry and other partners, the faculty, staff, and facilities development have all been strategically planned and implemented. USDA continues to maintain their Wildlife Services regional programs office at TAL. Additionally, USDA has added veterinarians from USDA APHIS Veterinary Services, including the Aquaculture Program Leader and the Aquaculture Import/Export Coordinator.

Industry-driven applied research, Extension outreach programs, and teaching of future aquaculture leaders are key avenues to achieve our mission of supporting the tropical ornamental aquaculture industry in Florida.