1. Please state project objectives and what work was done this quarter to address them:
This report is for the first quarter of year 1 of project 21-002C – Continued Support of the Southern Gardens Diagnostic Laboratory. The project provides HLB testing for researchers, growers and homeowners. A total of 6,468 samples were run during the first quarter of the project. All samples were plant samples (either leaves or roots) and the great majority of the samples were from research projects. As noted in previous reports, there is an increasing trend towards testing that includes copy number determination which increases the turn around time as the assay is more involved than assays that just require a determination of Ct. The lab also incurred an equipment-based setback that delayed some throughput for the first quarter. This has since been resolved.
2. Please state what work is anticipated for next quarter:
The budgeted sample load for each year of the project is 28,750 samples per year. Although the number of samples run during the first quarter is below the level that would meet that level of samples, the number of samples received to date indicates that we will more than likely reach or exceed the budgeted amount. The total number of samples that have been received (not all processed yet) through the first 4 months of the project is 10,410. At this rate, the projected number of samples per year would be approximately 31,230.
3. Please state budget status (underspend or overspend, and why):
As in the previously funded project, the final budget will be adjusted based on the final sample tally. If less samples are processed than the budgeted amount, the budget will be adjusted downward. Conversely, if more samples are processed, we will ask that the cost of the overage (expendables only) be covered.