By Clint Thompson
Count Alabama as another state that should rebound with a bumper peach crop this year.
After a Georgia industry leader confirmed his expectation of a bountiful crop to AgNet Media, Edgar Vinson, assistant research professor and Extension specialist in the Department of Horticulture at Auburn University, expressed optimism regarding this year’s peaches in Alabama.
“We’re seeing pretty much a full crop. When that cold front came through, there were some orchards, depending on where they were, they saw some pretty significant damage. Overall, looking at the entire industry in this area, there should be a full crop,” Vinson said.
Like most of the Southeast, Alabama peach producers were hampered last year by a pair of mid-March freeze events that followed unseasonably warm temperatures in February. It led to drastically low crop levels across the region. For Alabama, it continued a prolonged pattern of decreased volume.
That is why a rebound like this season is just what the doctor ordered for the state’s growers.
“I think 2018 was a pretty good year. 2017 was not that great; 2016 was okay, pretty full. Since I’ve had this position, those may have been the most productive seasons I think. I think this year should top those,” Vinson said. “It is very much needed. For several years of low crops, it was something that’s very much needed right now.”