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Below you'll find a list of all posts that have been categorized as “Florida”
Florida producers will continue to struggle if the issue of Mexican imports is not addressed, says Zhengfei Guan, UF/IFAS Associate Professor in the Food and Resource Economics Department. Farmers in the Sunshine State will always face an uphill battle if imports of such crops like tomatoes, bell peppers, strawberries and blueberries are allowed to continue. “They’re going to have a …
Domestic options will soon be available for consumers yearning for that sweet, delicious peach. The first of Florida’s peach crop will be ready in late March, according to Jose Chaparro, UF/IFAS Associate Professor in the Horticultural Sciences Department. He said the peach trees have produced their strongest bloom in the last five years. It is due in large part to …
What a difference a year makes for one Florida farmer. At a time of the season that should be the most profitable for Hank Scott, the 2020 spring was a disaster. It wasn’t due to disease issues, or increased pest pressures or adverse environmental conditions that affected crop yields. It was due to a global pandemic that nobody was prepared …
South Florida’s watermelon crop is a couple of weeks away from harvest. Producers in that region are looking to rebound after COVID-19 decimated last year’s season. How will producers fare in 2021? Bob Stewart, owner of GID Farms in Immokalee, Florida, says, “You never know.” “You go plant them, grow them and make the best crop you can and let …
The International Trade Committee’s (ITC) decision regarding blueberry imports was shocking to Florida’s blueberry producers. It was no less surprising to the state’s strawberry farmers who have their own ITC investigation under way. “Our jaws dropped. We know how bad the blueberry deal is and they said they were 5-0 voting against it,” said Matt Parke, farm manager of Parkesdale …
LAKE ALFRED, FLA — University of Florida researchers continue to study ways to combat Huanglongbing (HLB), or citrus greening disease. One discovery brings the potential of another tool for citrus growers to control Asian citrus psyllid, the insect that transmits the disease-causing bacterium, and protect infected trees from further damage. Kirsten Pelz-Stelinski, an associate professor of entomology and nematology at …
It was a record-setting week on some South Florida farms with respect to Asian bean thrips (ABT) populations. According to UF/IFAS, across most farms in southeastern Hendry County, ABT populations averaged 0.2 ABT per bud and ranged from 0.3 to 1.5 per bloom (at full bloom). But in an isolated located, reports were as high as 10.0 ABT per bloom …
Florida vegetable farmers are tired of voicing their displeasure with imports from Mexico. Some are seeing the writing on the wall; the end is nearing for American farmers. Kim Jamerson, whose husband grew up on a family farm and has been farming since age 6, is ready to sell her farm. It is not because she doesn’t enjoy the work …
According to the South Florida Pest and Disease Hotline, bacterial spot disease is active in tomato and pepper fields on the east coast and around southwest Florida. It is present at moderate levels in older hot pepper plants. Bacterial spot disease flares up after rain events and with fog in tomatoes and non-resistant peppers across the southwest region of Florida. …
Bob Spencer, with West Coast Tomato in Palmetto, Florida, believes there is light at the end of a year-long tunnel for the state’s tomato producers. As more states continue to reopen combined with the recent passage of the America Rescue Plan, there appears to be good news on the horizon for Florida tomato producers who have struggled from the onset …
