By Clint Thompson A key to vegetable producers’ success this fall starts before they even plant their crops. Forming the perfect bed in vegetable crop systems helps growers facilitate the movement of fumigants to control nematodes and weeds, as well the movement of water and fertilizer through the drip system. University of Georgia Cooperative Extension weed scientist Stanley Culpepper stresses …
Hemp Alert: Alabama Growers Watch out for Corn Earworms
By Clint Thompson Alabama hemp producers need to be wary of high insect pressure across the region. Katelyn Kesheimer, Auburn University Assistant Professor and Extension Specialist, said growers especially need to watch out for corn earworms. “The biggest thing that people need to be aware of that we’re dealing with right now is corn earworm. We started finding them in …
Optimistic Outlook: Sunnier Days Ahead for North Alabama Produce
By Clint Thompson The calm after the storm seems to have hit north Alabama. In a summer highlighted by persistent rains, the north Alabama region has experienced sunnier days recently. It has Doug Chapman, Alabama Extension agent for Commercial Horticulture in North Alabama, optimistic for what remains for his farmers’ vegetable and specialty crops. “It rained on the first of …
Added Burden: Input Costs a Concern for Vegetable Producers
By Clint Thompson Freight and other input costs continue to be on the mind of vegetable and specialty crop producers heading into the fall season. It is especially concerning for Drew Echols, owner of Jaemor Farms in North Georgia, who is in the middle of a 20-acre watermelon harvest and will pick as much as 200 acres of pumpkins this …
Dry Conditions Remain Minimal Across Southeast Region
Dry conditions continue to be virtually non-existent across the Southeast. Due to persistent rains this summer, the majority of the Southeast region has sufficient moisture, according to Thursday’s release of the U.S. Drought Monitor. There are abnormally dry conditions in Florida, Georgia or Alabama. A small portion of Greenville County and Spartanburg County in South Carolina is abnormally dry. A …
Grapes of Wrath: Wet Summer Impacting Fruit Development, Quality
By Clint Thompson Like other crops produced in Georgia and Alabama, grapes are not immune to the impact of the excessive rains being experienced across the Southeast this summer. They are impacting production, says Phil Brannen, University of Georgia Cooperative Extension Fruit Disease Specialist. “It’s wet. We’ve definitely had plenty of rain, very little drying time. It seems like it …
Time is Now to Fruit Thin Pecan Crop
Now is the time for pecan producers with a heavy crop load to thin their crop, according to the University of Georgia Extension pecan blog. Lenny Wells, University of Georgia Extension pecan specialist, said that growers with Pawnee varieties need to thin their crop now. Those with Cape Fear, Creek, Stuart and other varieties have 2 to 3 more weeks …
Why the Increase? Alabama Extension Entomologist Talks Rise in Fall Armyworms
By Clint Thompson High infestations of fall armyworms may be a surprise to Alabama producers this summer, but they aren’t to Ayanava Majumdar, Extension Professor in Entomology and Plant Pathology at Auburn University. “We had the trap numbers from the very beginning, and we knew this was coming,” Majumdar said. According to the most recent Alabama Extension Pest Monitoring Report, …
Alabama Producers Be Wary of Pickleworms
According to the Alabama Vegetable IPM Facebook page, producers need to be wary of pickleworms on squash and cucumbers. This is especially essential for growers with the late-planted crop. Alabama Extension describes pickleworms as large moths with semi-transparent yellowish wings and dark wing borders. Male and female moths have tufts of hair at the end of their dark abdomen. Moths …
Summer Rains Impacting Pecan Quality, Quantity
By Clint Thompson Pecan quality and quantity is expected to take a hit during the upcoming season. The quantity is not a surprise following last year’s crop. The quality is a result of increased scab disease pressure following persistent rains this summer. “Our young trees is where most of the crop is going to come from this year,” Lenny Wells, …