Favorable Weather Conditions for Alabama Christmas Tree Production This Year

Clint ThompsonAlabama, Christmas trees

By Clint Thompson Alabama Christmas trees are on the verge of being cut down for this year’s holiday season. Looks like most live trees have benefited from this year’s growing conditions, says Steve Mannhard, with Fish River Farms in Baldwin County, Alabama. “They are in pretty good shape. They’re better than last year. We had a little better summer in …

Dry Weather’s Impact in Southeast Alabama

Clint ThompsonAlabama

By Clint Thompson Dry weather conditions continue to linger in Alabama. Like other areas in the state, Southeast Alabama is feeling the impact, says Neil Kelly, Alabama regional Extension agent in Southeast Alabama. “I guess we’ve been the better part of three weeks since we’ve had a rain. This time of year, what rain we get lasts longer than it …

Drought Monitor Update: Moderate Dry Conditions Cover Most of Alabama

Clint ThompsonAlabama

By Clint Thompson Drought-like conditions continue to cover the majority of Alabama. According to the most recent release of the U.S. Drought Monitor, moderate conditions in the state start as far south as Mobile and Baldwin counties near the Gulf of Mexico and stretch northward to North Alabama counties, including Lauderdale, Limestone, Madison and Jackson counties. Severe conditions are concentrated …

Dry Weather Means Less Scab Pressure for Alabama Pecan Producers

Clint ThompsonAlabama

By Clint Thompson Prolonged dry weather conditions across Alabama means minimal scab disease pressure on the state’s pecan crop. That’s positive news for growers who have already begun harvests this season, says Bryan Wilkins, Auburn University research associate. “The scab really didn’t hurt us this year. I’ve got people that didn’t spray at all. But even some of the homeowners, …

Dry Weather Impacting Northeast Alabama

Clint ThompsonAlabama

By Clint Thompson Northeast Alabama remains considerably dry. Some areas have not received any measurable moisture for more than a month, according to Eric Schavey, regional Extension agent in Northeast Alabama. “We’re going on 42 days at my farm (without rain), and since May 25, I’ve had 2.3 inches of rain,” Schavey said. “It doesn’t look like any rain for …

Hurricane Helene, Milton Took Different Paths to Southeast

Clint ThompsonAlabama, Florida, Georgia

By Clint Thompson First Helene, then Milton. Mother Nature’s 1-2 punch of hurricanes took different paths in impacting the Southeast this fall. Instead of making their way across the Atlantic, those two major hurricanes originated in the western Caribbean. It did not take long for them to hit the Gulf of Mexico and impact southeastern states; Helene in North Florida, …

Drought Monitor: Alabama Still Mostly Dry

Clint ThompsonAlabama

Drought-like conditions remain prevalent across most of Alabama, while abnormally dry conditions are observed in Southeast Georgia. This is according to the most recent release of the U.S. Drought Monitor. Abnormally dry and moderately dry conditions comprise most of Alabama, except for an area located along the Alabama-Georgia border. Moderate conditions are observed in Southwest Alabama, starting in Mobile and …

Alabama Extension Specialist: Potential for Neopestalotiopsis is Having Severe Impact

Clint ThompsonAlabama

By Clint Thompson The threat of neopestalotiopsis on strawberry plants in the Southeast is having a “severe impact on the industry,” according to Edgar Vinson, assistant research professor and Extension specialist in the Department of Horticulture at Auburn University. “A lot of nursery owners have opted either to not sell plants or are advising the growers that they’re taking the …

Weather Conditions Remain a Key Factor in Neopestalotiopsis’ Impact in Strawberries

Clint ThompsonAlabama, Strawberries

By Clint Thompson Alabama strawberry producers are at greater risk than ever of planting a crop impacted by Neopestalotiopsis. But Ed Sikora, professor and Extension plant pathologist in the department of entomology and plant pathology at Auburn University, contends that the weather next spring will be an ‘X’ factor in determining the disease’s impact on the state’s crop. “I think …

AFVGA Conference Bigger Next Year

Clint ThompsonAlabama

By Clint Thompson The Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association is going bigger with next year’s annual conference and trade show, scheduled for Feb. 5-7, 2025, at the Lodge at Gulf State Park in Gulf Shores, Alabama. Blake Thaxton, executive director of the Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (AFVGA), discusses the event which will cater to more vendors this …