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Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Alabama”
By Clint Thompson Tomato harvests are under way for one Alabama producer. Chad Smith, in St. Clair County, said the intense heat felt this summer, which followed steady rainfall in the spring, contributed to what is expected to be an “average crop” this season. “This year, we had a lot of rain early, and it turned off hot and dry. …
By Clint Thompson Alabama pecan producers are feeling optimistic about the crop for the first time in four years. Not since 2020 have the state’s pecan farmers felt this good about its crop heading into harvest season, according to Bryan Wilkins, Auburn University research associate. “It was a decent June drop, but it just really thinned them out like they …
By Clint Thompson Alabama fruits and vegetables were highlighted on Saturday as part of the third annual Sweet Grown Alabama Day throughout the state. Aisling Walding, assistant director for Sweet Grown Alabama, said the spotlight was put on Alabama agriculture at 14 participating farmers markets. “Sweet Grown Alabama Day was just a way to show love to Alabama farmers and …
By Clint Thompson Those interested in attending next year’s Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (AFVGA) conference and trade show can mark their calendars for Feb. 5-7, 2025, in Gulf Shores, Alabama. The annual conference returns to South Alabama for another year, with registration slated to open on Nov. 1. Blake Thaxton, executive director of the AFVGA, talked about the …
By Clint Thompson The lack of younger pecan growers in Alabama concerns the president of the Alabama Pecan Growers Association (APGA). Bran Futral, APGA president, discussed the current state of the industry with harvest season just a couple of months away. “I think if there was a significant concern, and this worries me the most as I spend my time …
By Clint Thompson Like other specialty crop organizations, the Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (AFVGA) is pleased to see movement being made on the farm bill. With the House Agriculture Committee and Senate Agriculture Committee passing frameworks of a bill, the AFVGA is eyeing both leadership members to see what is next, says Blake Thaxton, executive director of the …
By Clint Thompson The ongoing drought is slowing disease pressure among Alabama vegetables, says Ed Sikora, professor and Extension plant pathologist in the department of entomology and plant pathology at Auburn University. But that doesn’t mean disease pressure is quiet across all vegetables, especially tomatoes. Sikora outlined what tomato diseases are present across the state and what can be done …
By Clint Thompson Fruit and vegetable season is wide open across Alabama. Crops are being harvested and sold in counties all over the state. Blake Thaxton, executive director of the Alabama Fruit and Vegetable Growers Association (AFVGA), discussed the current situation facing his state’s specialty crop producers. “It’s wide-open peach season. The peach crop seems to be doing well, definitely …
By Clint Thompson One Alabama strawberry grower dodged one disease that plagued many of her colleagues this year. Taylor Hatchett, who produced two acres in Chilton County, talked about Neopestalotiopsis, which was a problem across the Southeast this year. “We had not that, thankfully on the farm this year, but I do know that has been one that’s been more …
By Clint Thompson A lack of a spring freeze not only allowed Alabama peach producer Jackson Reeves to field a bumper crop this year, it enabled him to capitalize on early varieties that are usually the most vulnerable to cold damage. “We don’t grow a whole lot of these early varieties because they usually get killed, but we do have …
