By Clint Thompson
The lingering drought has spread across the Southeast and impacted various parts of Florida, specifically in the northeast part of the state.
Bob Hochmuth, University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (UF/IFAS) Regional Specialized Extension agent in Live Oak, Florida, discusses the impact the dry weather is having in his area.
“We’re very dry, and even when Hurricane Idalia came through, there’s parts of the area here that got less than an inch and others that got more than that. The bulk of the region didn’t get that much out of Idalia and since then maybe one rain event of any consequence,” Hochmuth said. “In terms of impact, and keep in mind this is the vegetable side of things, there’s not a lot of stuff we’re involved with that we can’t deal with without irrigation. From a vegetable standpoint, it just means that we’re irrigating a lot more.
“We’ve got carrots planting until sometime in November, so carrot planting is ongoing right now. There’s some fall snap beans that are planted. There’s fall cole crops that have been and continue to be established in not huge acreage. The peppers and tomatoes that survived the storm would also be ongoing right now. In terms of things that are continually being planted right now, I would say the main thing is probably the carrots and some of the fall cole crops, broccoli and there are some brussels sprout acreage down here; those kinds of crops.”
According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, abnormally dry and moderately dry conditions start in Taylor and Dixie counties and stretch northeastward to Nassau, Duval and Clay counties.